Springfield College Fieldhouse and Wellness Center

Construction Cost: $21.5 million
Area / Square Feet: 164,000
Occupancy Date: September 2008

Designed to fit into and around existing buildings on a dense suburban campus, the Fieldhouse and Wellness Center form a connection between previously disconnected buildings. The 90,000-square-foot fieldhouse features four multiuse courts and a 200-meter track, team locker rooms, concessions areas and public restrooms for the adjacent football/soccer bleachers. The wellness center includes a 15,000-square-foot fitness center, five multiuse rooms, campus recreation offices, and faculty and staff offices. A separate Athletic Training/Exercise Science wing provides new training rooms, offices and classrooms for the ATES program. Control is achieved via two staffed entrances where access and circulation throughout the facilities can be monitored. Once inside, students and faculty have full access to all portions of the complex through monitored corridors and spaces.


The complex is tied to the campus by the use of common colors and materials, but with a contemporary and a greatly increased use of natural light. Every functional space in the facility boasts natural light, and the fitness center has sweeping views of the main campus road and the river beyond. Outside views into the complex draw people in and give life to the complex.


The difficulty of connecting buildings at different elevations was overcome by using a pedestrian bridge/underpass and a ground-level connector that provide complete access throughout the complex while maintaining pedestrian and vehicle access to the outdoor fields.