Harold Alfond Athletics and Recreation Center, Colby College

Waterville, ME
Construction Cost: $150M (estimated construction cost)
Area / Square Feet: 350,000 square feet
Occupancy Date: September 2020

The state-of-the-art Harold Alfond Athletics and Recreation Center at Colby College transcends conventional athletics and recreation center design, efficiently and elegantly integrating all of Colby’s indoor competition venues, training areas and other support spaces to comprehensively serve every athletics, recreation and wellness program on campus.

The bold design complements the existing traditional campus architecture, signaling a new chapter for Colby athletics and recreation. The center is another example of the college’s ongoing commitment to excellence, and is one in a series of investments to create and support best-in-class programs that set the school apart as one of the top liberal arts colleges in the country.

Major venues are organized around a central courtyard that connects all three levels and provides clarity and orientation for both visitors and everyday users. The primary public entrance, on axis with the courtyard, is on the second level to minimize travel distance and provide spectators with top-feeding to the seating in the competition areas. This organization allows the structure to be built into the terrain, mitigating the overall building scale and minimizing exterior facade.

This facility is home to a range of program types and venues, including a multi-use field house containing an indoor track, tennis courts and a climbing wall; an ice arena; the only Olympic-sized pool in the state of Maine; a competition gymnasium for basketball and volleyball; squash courts; a strength and fitness center; studios; as well as multipurpose spaces, locker rooms, sports medicine facilities, offices, support spaces and outdoor amenities.