By Abigail Funk

Abigail Funk is an Assistant Editor at Athletic Management. She can be reached at: afunk@MomentumMedia.com.

For most athletic directors, every year should be better than the last. Every season should show improvement. Every month should bring new ideas. Every day should be full of promise.

There may be nothing that accomplishes that sentiment more than building a new athletic facility. Whether it's a small weightroom or a huge stadium, constructing an athletic complex does more than provide a new space for athletes to run, jump, and throw. It allows a department to review its goals, get everyone working together, and plan for the future.

Such was the case for the athletic departments we profile in this year's Facilities of Innovation. From integrating academics and athletics, to moving to a new NCAA division, to upgrading a high school football stadium for the future, the following projects offered athletic administrators solutions for their unique situations.

PERFORMANCE OPPORTUNITY
Oregon State University's primary weight training facility was small--so small that only one team could lift at a time, and taller athletes couldn't perform a full clean and press for fear of putting a hole in the ceiling. While a second weightroom in another facility afforded a little more space, it forced the strength and conditioning staff to split up.

The need for a new weightroom was apparent. But when OSU administrators got together with HNTB Architecture of Kansas City, Mo., in the spring of 2006, it wasn't to design a weightroom per se--it was to construct an entire performance facility.

In May, OSU opened the doors to its Sports Performance Center, a 30,000 square-foot facility that boasts not only a weightroom three times the size of its predecessor, but a 60-yard track and state-of-the-art wrestling practice facility. The construction's price tag was $7 million, which worked out to about $250 per square foot.

"Oregon State's old facilities just didn't fit its caliber of athletes," says HNTB Project Designer Henry Lau. "The Center was a much-needed improvement. And the opportunity this facility presents for impressing recruits when they're touring campus is phenomenal."

John Cheney, Assistant Athletic Director for Facilities and Operations at Oregon State, says the Sports Performance Center allows for a lot of flexibility. "We can train multiple teams at one time, even with a large football program," he says. "That allows our student-athletes to lift at a reasonable hour of the day instead of at 6 a.m. or late at night like they used to. And the 60-yard track means one team can start a warmup while another team is finishing on the racks."

The Center also houses the entire strength and conditioning staff, with all its offices at one end of the weightroom glassed in so that they can survey the area at any time. And with the wrestling practice facility on the second floor, the grapplers, who previously practiced in an academic building across campus, now feel more like a part of the athletic program.

"Ultimately, we're developing a sports complex with all of our athletic buildings in very close proximity to each other," Cheney says. "A more centralized complex lets the student-athletes go from locker rooms in one facility right across the street to the Sports Performance Center, then to the field."

One unique part of the design was how HNTB strategically controlled the views into and out of the Performance Center. "As an example, we used transparent walls in several areas so that the athletes can see through to the huge windows that overlook campus landmarks like Reser Stadium," Lau says. "We wanted to maintain the private aspect of a weight training facility, but provide views to have that sense of still being a part of campus. Our success there came from working closely with the athletic department to really understand the feeling they wanted in the facility."

The Center also includes a players' lounge as part of the wrestling practice facility with the latest sound and video systems. Spread out over the 20,000 square-foot weightroom are 22 Olympic platforms, 22 power racks and adjustable benches, six sets of dumbbells, and 45 cardio machines--40,000 pounds of new equipment in all.

Cheney says there are a lot of little things that make the Center feel special. "The glassed-in coaches' offices allow for nice visibility and give it an upscale look," he says. "We also included an entryway with cubbies for our student-athletes to put their gear in. That might not seem very important, but it definitely makes a difference in their eyes. It means the facility is more functional for our student-athletes, which results in a better building in the end."

DIVISION UPGRADE
When Nova Southeastern University decided to make the move from competing in the NAIA to NCAA Division II about eight years ago, upgrading athletic facilities were at the top of Athletic Director Mike Mominey's to-do list. "We had no on-campus facility for basketball or volleyball," he says. "We were playing our home contests across the street at a local junior college."

As Mominey and other administrators started throwing around ideas for a new indoor facility, they were careful to think ahead to the future and outline the goals of the new building. The first goal was to have a complex that would appeal to recruits and future coaches.

"Facilities are critical for the recruitment of student-athletes and we were moving to a new competitive division," says Mominey, also Head Baseball Coach at Nova. "If it's not the first or second question a recruit asks, it's the third: 'What are your facilities like? Can I see them?' And from an athletic director's perspective, facilities are important for the recruitment of coaches as well as a fan base."

The second goal was to be able to eventually host regional and national events, while keeping a home-court advantage for everyday contests. "We talked a lot about how many seats to put in," says Roland Lemke, Project Designer at Cannon Design in Washington, D.C., the architectural firm hired for the project. "If they could get 25 people to walk across the street for a game, it was a crowd, but they also wanted to be able to host an NCAA Division II championship, which requires a venue with 4,000 seats. And a few hundred people in 4,000 seats does not look or feel like a crowd at all."

So Cannon came up with a unique solution. The main gym floor seats 1,000 immediately surrounding it. Then, on a mezzanine level, retractable seating allows for another 3,000-plus fans. When hosting a contest with a smaller crowd, convention center-style partitions close off the extra seating on the mezzanine level for an intimate environment. And underneath the mezzanine-level retractable seats are two more courts, permitting Nova to have three courts in use during practices or open gym time.

Nova made the switch to Division II in 2002, the University Center was born on paper in 2004, and it was completed two years later. The $83 million, 366,000 square-foot "fusion" building now serves as home to the men's and women's basketball and women's volleyball teams. It also includes a fitness center, weightroom, student union center, performing arts center, and athletic training and rehabilitation facilities, including a hydrotherapy room.

Mominey believes the University Center has played a critical role in helping his teams succeed. The women's basketball squad won the Sunshine State Conference championship last year and received the program's first NCAA tournament bid. And the women's volleyball team posted a 15-win improvement from 2006 to 2007.

"That success wasn't by luck or mistake," Mominey says. "Our coaches would not have been able to recruit these athletes without the University Center. And our athletes are now able to train in a new weightroom and have access to state-of-the-art athletic training services. Constructing an indoor venue was a critical part of our move and the building has had a tremendous positive effect on our entire athletic program."

FAN FRIENDLY
As Nikki Luper looked over the football field upon becoming Athletic Director at Oak Harbor (Wash.) High School in 2007, she had one thought: "There's no way a state championship team played on this field." But Oak Harbor had indeed captured the 4A Washington state championship in 2006, playing home games on an old and bedraggled field.

"There was no press box, so they would put up tarps above some of the stands," Luper says. "There were mostly wooden bleachers and a few aluminum bleachers. Around the field was a yellow rope held up by little round garbage cans, and because there was so little seating, everybody just stood around the rope. When I saw the orange fencing along the backside of the field, all I could say was, 'Oh my gosh.'"

Luckily, former Athletic Director Bob Smithson had helped to get a bond passed that allowed for the construction of a new field and Luper's main responsibility was to see the construction through to the final product. That included a brand new synthetic field, covered seating for 2,500 on the home side and another 500 for visitors, and six press boxes for the media, announcers, and coaching staffs.

Another important component was a new track to circle the field--the track and field team had practiced and held home meets at the middle school for the past decade. But the best part of the Wildcats' new stadium is that it still has a hometown feel to it.
"The facility is really fan-friendly," Luper says. "People can walk all the way around it, and those fans who were used to standing at the rope at the old field can still stand right up close to this field without obstructing any views or being in the way."

Also a highlight of the facility for the small naval town on Whidbey Island is a veterans' memorial at the front entrance. "There was a last-minute rally to raise enough money--$175,000--to put in a memorial," says Mitch Romero, Project Manager at Atlanta-based Heery International, which designed the field. "The bell on the memorial is from a big battle ship that was a historic landmark here and was sitting in city hall for many years. This town has a lot of civic pride, and the memorial is really the only civic monument here."

The memorial was an integral part of the 2007 opening of Wildcat Stadium, which had people lining up at 4 p.m. for a 7 p.m. kickoff. "We had a ribbon cutting ceremony and dedication at 5:30 before we let people in," Luper says. "The Navy band played for an hour before the game, and we even had a jet fly over us right before kickoff.

"Because the whole project was locally funded, at halftime we made sure to recognize the rotary club, everybody who had helped campaign for the bond to pass, and the architects and construction workers who had finished working literally hours earlier," she continues. "It was a huge and wonderful event for this town."

COMPLEX SITUATION
Throughout most NCAA programs, athletic directors have been working on ideas to better integrate athletics with academics. At Springfield College, one solution was to do so with a new building.

"We look at athletics as co-curricular, not extracurricular," says Athletic Director Cathie Schweitzer. "We have a large athletic program with over 800 NCAA Division III student-athletes, a very strong physical education program, and a lot of sport-related majors. In addition, all 21 of our full-time coaches teach. We view athletics as an educational component of our students' academic success."

With this philosophy in mind, Springfield decided to construct a complex that combined athletic and academic buildings. "We wanted our new facilities to bring us all closer together rather than spread us out across campus," Schweitzer says. "It allows for a lot more collaboration and camaraderie, and we're really excited about that."

In September, Springfield opened the doors to a brand new fieldhouse, wellness center, and athletic training and exercise science complex. The 93,800 square-foot fieldhouse holds a six-lane 200-meter track, four multi-purpose courts, a strength and conditioning room, locker rooms, and a concessions area. The wellness center spans 28,000 square feet and houses cardio and weight training rooms, a climbing wall, multi-purpose rooms, the campus recreation center, and numerous faculty offices. The athletic training and exercise science complex boasts a state-of-the-art athletic training room, teaching and research labs, and multiple classrooms and faculty offices.

The challenge for Dan DiLullo, President of DiLullo Associates in Melrose, Mass., which designed the facility, was getting all the buildings to fit in the space allowed, and to have traffic flow in a seamless way. One solution included turning a small road into a pedestrian walkway, which extensively cut down on automobile traffic and aesthetically made the new facilities all fit together with pre-existing buildings.

Schweitzer is excited about how the new facility will help many different programs on campus. "Our previous facilities were old and small, and hurting us recruiting-wise," she says. "They weren't satisfying the needs of current students, either. If our athletic teams were using all the indoor facilities, there wasn't anywhere for someone to play pickup ball, and that's not what we're about here. Now, we have more than enough space."

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT
The heat in Arizona during the summer months can be oppressive, and with the attention heat illness has received in recent years, athletic officials can't be too careful. That was one major reason Arizona State University decided to invest in an air-supported, air-conditioned practice facility.

"In August, the temperatures can range from 110 to 120 degrees during the day, and even in the evenings we rarely go below 100," says Dawn Rogers, Associate Athletic Director and Senior Woman Administrator at Arizona State. "It's a priority that we provide all of our teams with the safest possible environment, and the ability to have them practice in an air-conditioned facility is awesome."

The air-supported structure is the first in the state of Arizona, and others are popping up across the country. "We've seen these in the Southeast because of the heat and on the East Coast because of the year-round capabilities," says Bob Draper, Director of Sports Engineering at CMX, the Phoenix-based engineering firm that handled the project. "They're a great investment because if Arizona State were to build a permanent facility of this size, it would cost upwards of $30 million. Here, they've spent about $8 million."

The "bubble" or "dome" structure is kept inflated by air blowers that produce about 3,500 cubic feet per minute, with special doors that don't compromise the facility's inflation level. "For this project, with so many athletes entering and exiting at the same time, we installed two door systems," Draper says. "One system is an air-tight revolving door you just push and walk through. Then, there are also pass-through doors with which you open the outside door, walk in and close it, then open an inside door to enter the actual facility so there is no loss of pressure. One of these pass-through entrances has double doors and probably 50 football players can fit in there at one time before opening the inside doors."

The structure is massive, spanning 460 feet by 225 feet with one-and-a-half artificial turf football fields laid out in a T shape. Arizona State opened the doors to preseason football practices in August and plans to use it primarily for football, but also for other intercollegiate athletic team practices, band practices, student recreation, and summer camps held on campus.

In late August, only days into preseason football practices, the facility had a setback, though. Major storms that whipped through the area damaged the fabric dome. The good news, however, was that the structure could be fixed in about two weeks. Because tears in the fabric were straight slices, it involved re-stitching and not much patchwork.

"When I looked at it the next day it just made me sick to my stomach," Rogers says. "All I could think was, what a waste. I was very happy to hear it could easily be repaired and we wouldn't have to throw away that fabric. In a couple of weeks, we were up and running again.

"We envision the structure being used almost 365 days a year," Rogers continues. "We'll even use it for pregame tailgating, especially for our September games, when it is still really warm. It allows us so much flexibility since our teams can now move inside due to rain or the heat at any time during the year."

Sidebar: AN ANALYSIS
Sometimes you just need a fresh set of eyes. That's what Edgar Johnson, Athletic Director at the University of Delaware, realized when he and other school officials were in the midst of planning a facilities upgrade. Too many ideas from too many people with different goals can make it tough to see what the best solutions to the issues may be.

"It was obvious to us that we needed to have some professional help in looking at how we're currently utilizing our facilities," Johnson says. "We had all been talking about what our needs are for a number of years but thought it would be helpful to have professional people from the outside come in. We asked them to analyze what we have now, how we're using it, and what we will need in the future."

So Delaware signed on with HOK Sport, an architectural design firm based in Kansas City, Mo., that has also been offering facilities analysis services for the past 25 years. The first thing Sherri Privitera, Project Manager at HOK Sport, did on campus was meet with staff members to get a better idea for their different wants and needs.

"We always start off with data gathering," she says. "We want to get to know the university--the facilities people, athletic department, coaches, and other staff members who are the everyday users. We need to know how they operate, what's working well for them, and what is not."

Marge McDermott, Assistant Director for Facilities at Delaware, says the current effort with HOK is not only to analyze strengths and weaknesses, but also offer help with campus master planning. "We'll be getting a very broad look at all of our sports venues and in the end, we'll have a planning document that can lead us to not only immediate solutions, but also far-reaching solutions over the next 15 to 20 years."

For Johnson, having HOK come in to help out was a no-brainer. "Collegiate athletics is a competitive business and we're trying to recruit quality student-athletes to our campus," he says. "Those athletes want to know where they'll be practicing and competing and we want to make sure our facilities are current and up to date for that reason. Not only do we get an outside perspective, but an architecture firm brings the most current ideas to the table because they're all over the country working on new facilities."