A roundup of groundbreakings, grand openings and building projects in development.
Groundbreakings
Rendering of O'Fallon Park, St. Louis, MO. (Rendering courtesy of KAI)Construction is under way on a new $16.7 million recreation complex at O'Fallon Park on St. Louis' north side. Designed by St. Louis-based KAI, the two-story, 79,000-square-foot recreation center will feature an aquatics center with an indoor splash pool and a triple-loop slide, a motion pool, a children's pool, a sauna, a steam room, a spa and an outdoor lap pool. The facility will also include a gymnasium, an indoor track, a fitness center, locker rooms and a community multipurpose room. . .
In late July, ground was broken at the joint U.S. Naval base Pearl Harbor-Hickman for a centralized fitness facility that will boast state-of-the-art fitness amenities. The 63,636-square-foot center will serve as many as 18,000 patrons per month from more than 200 area commands. Honolulu, Hawaii-based Next Design consulted on the design, and Kiewit Building Group has been awarded the design-build contract for the $24.4 million, two-story facility that will showcase numerous sustainable features, including recycled construction materials, photovoltaic arrays and drought-tolerant landscaping. Amenities will include a large gymnasium, a cardio and strength training area and two racquetball courts.
First Pitch
About 40 people in Hamilton, Ont., attended the first community meeting to help plan a $132.5 million aquatic center and sports institute that will be located in nearby Scarborough. The venue is expected to be the largest featured in the 2015 Pan Am Games. . .
Recreation officials in Sprinker, Wash., have determined that $6.1 million in renovations to the town's 34-year-old recreation center might be more practical than an originally proposed $34 million remodel. . .
East Chicago, Ill., has decided to invest $5 million into new track and soccer facilities at East Chicago Central High School. . .
After years of holding some of their biggest athletic competitions at other sites, school officials in Jefferson County, Ky., are considering building a 32,000-seat arena, part of a $26 million proposal that would also add a new auditorium. . .
The Spotsylvania, Va., county board of supervisors has reached a deal with two local nonprofit sports organizations to develop 80 acres of unused land into a 17-field soccer complex. . .
$15 million in state funds has been allotted to West Virginia State University to help renovate Fleming Hall, which houses athletic offices and the school's health and human performance program. . .
The University of Michigan board of regents has approved the schematic design of a new, $2.5 million, 10,000-square-foot golf practice facility. . .
The Norton Shores, Mich., city council has given its blessing to a proposed 2,500-seat ice arena that would serve the community and also be home to the West Michigan Blizzard of the All-American Hockey League. . .
Officials at Prairie View A&M University have unveiled a $60 million capital improvement plan that includes a new $34 million football stadium, new athletic department offices and upgrades to basketball facilities. . .
The Florida Atlantic University board of trustees has approved a financing plan for a new 30,000-seat, $70 million football stadium. . .
Mississippi State University is currently developing a master plan for its football venue, Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field, that could expand the seating capacity to 75,000. . .
In mid-August, residents of Southlake, Texas, got their first look at plan alternatives and artist renderings of a new municipal multipurpose center. . .
The Fergus Falls, Minn., city council is in the approval process for a new $6 million community ice arena. . .
Town officials in East Fiskhill, N.Y., are considering using $500,000 from a trust account to buy 20 acres of land as the site for a proposed community recreation center. . .
North Carolina Gov. Beverly Perdue has signed a bill that includes a funding plan for on-campus football stadium construction at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. The school is hoping to construct a $40.5 million stadium and football complex, and field a football team as soon as 2013. . .
Officials at Tulane University announced plans for a $13 million, 43,000-square-foot basketball and volleyball practice facility, and the university said it also plans to include an additional $2 million per year to the athletics operations budget and as much as $2 million per year in athletics scholarship funding relief.
Grand Openings
Christiansburg Aquatic Center, Christianburg, Va. (Photo courtesy of Christiansburg Aquatic Center)Envisioned in the town of Christianburg, Va.'s master plan since 1994, a 64,000-square-foot, two-story aquatics center opened in July. The facility features a 50-meter pool with a diving well, a leisure pool with a water slide and numerous water play features, a heated therapy pool and an aquatic fitness area. The $17.9 million center also has the capability to host local or regional competitive swim meets. Nearby Virginia Tech University will have exclusive privileges at the center for 25 years, including reserved pool times for team training and rights to host Atlantic Coast Conference swim meets. In return, the university has agreed to pay the town $5 million, in $250,000 annual payments, over the next 20 years.
University of Iowa Campus Recreational and Wellness Center (Photos © Recreational Services-The University of Iowa)In plenty of time to accommodate fall's mass arrival of students, the University of Iowa Campus Recreational and Wellness Center opened Aug. 2. The $70 million, 215,000-square-foot facility includes offices for both the UI Wellness and Health department and the department of Recreational Services, and will be the home location for the UI swimming and diving teams. Highlights of the recreation center include a 5212-foot climbing wall, a 20,042-square-foot fitness area with equipment on three levels, competition pools, a leisure pool and spa, two gymnasiums, a 19-mile indoor track, a multipurpose court, three multipurpose activity rooms, steam and sauna rooms, a café and locker rooms. Artwork featured prominently in the facility includes a bronze relief of NCAA champion UI swimmer Jack Sieg, who was instrumental in developing the butterfly stroke, and two elaborate floor mosaics.
Interior photos of the University of Iowa Campus Recreational and Wellness Center (Photos © Recreational Services-The University of Iowa)To accommodate an influx of soldiers to Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas, the U.S. Army has opened its largest fitness facility to date - the 96,000-square-foot Joshua W. Soto Physical Fitness Facility. Named in honor of a soldier who died last summer during a roadside bombing in Iraq, the $22 million facility includes $2 million worth of fitness equipment alone. Other amenities include a 10,000-square-foot weight training room, a group cycling room with 60 bikes, and a cardio area with 60 treadmills, 60 elliptical trainers, 20 stair-steppers and 10 rowing machines. The facility includes a 110-mile running track, a combatives room, two basketball courts, a fitness assessment room, a concessions area, and locker rooms and showers that can accommodate 130 people at a time.
