Colorado University Athletics
Regents Approve Far-Reaching Athletic Facilities Plan
DENVER GÇô The University of Colorado athletic department on Wednesday took its most significant step forward in two-plus decades, receiving the green light from the schoolGÇÖs Board of Regents to proceed with a comprehensive facilities re-design.
The Regents voted 9-0 to approve a $140 million-plus plan presented by Athletic Director Rick George that will:
- Add an indoor multipurpose practice facility (football field/300 meter track), whose location is to be determined. The proposed site is on Franklin Field, just east of Folsom FieldGÇÖs east side. The indoor facility also would be used for tailgating on game day;
- Refurbish the Dal Ward Athletics Center, which was completed in 1991, to include an Olympic sports strength training room in the sub-basement level and new locker rooms and equipment room on the field level;
- Redesign Dal WardGÇÖs first floor for the expansion of Olympic sports/sports medicine, a leadership development center and an end zone club with club seating and loge boxes;
- Transform the second floor of Dal Ward to increase the athletic departmentGÇÖs academic support system from its current 5,115 square feet to 17,200 square feet. The training table will remain on the second floor;
- Add a 21,900-square foot high-performance sports center on the northeast corner of the stadium, as well as a rooftop terrace on the northeast corner, converting the south offices at Folsom Field to retail space. The rooftop terrace will generate revenue by being rentable for non-game-day events;
- Also proposed for the third floor of the sports performance center are team meeting rooms. CoachesGÇÖ offices and athletic administration offices will move from their current locations at Folsom FieldGÇÖs GÇ£gatesGÇ¥ to the suite level (fourth) on FolsomGÇÖs east side.
GÇ£IGÇÖm very excited about what this will do for our program long-term,GÇ¥ said George, who was named CUGÇÖs athletic director on July 18 and started work on Aug. 12. GÇ£It will allow us to create a world-class, holistic student-athlete experience. It will allow us to compete for and win championships, and it will allow us to become fiscally responsible. I believe itGÇÖs a long-term sustainable model.GÇ¥
He said the long-range, comprehensive plan obviously was well-received by the Regents: GÇ£Getting a 9-0 vote is very rewarding for the whole group that has worked on this.GÇ¥
By the time ground is broken GÇô the target is this spring GÇô on the departmentGÇÖs GÇ£sustainable excellence initiative,GÇ¥ George hopes to have one-third of the money raised. GÇ£It could be corporately, it could be an annual revenue that we generate, it could be private donors.GÇ¥
Regent Steve Bosley called GeorgeGÇÖs proposal GÇ£a well-thought out business planGÇ¥ that represents a large and potentially lucrative investment for the campus, city of Boulder and state. Of the possible criticism aimed at launching such a project without a large number of donations in hand, Bosley said, GÇ£That dog wonGÇÖt hunt.GÇ¥ He said he prefers GÇ£starting with a vision and turning it into a plan.GÇ¥
Close to $10 million GÇ£in actual gifts and concrete pledgesGÇ¥ has been raised thus far, George said. GÇ£And in the last two months, weGÇÖve canvassed all areas of the country, from our own backyard to each coast and have GÇÿasksGÇÖ out there in the neighborhood of $40 million more.GÇ¥
While a $50 million goal initially was stated, with an early December timetable, George said that number GÇ£was never one that we had to meet by December. We are enthusiastic, focused and driven on raising the initial funds needed for the plan . . . however, it is not, and never has been, a deal-breaker to have raised the money by the first of December.GÇ¥
The upgrading of CUGÇÖs facilities, said George, goes beyond potentially leveling the playing field in the Pac-12. Rather, GÇ£ItGÇÖs what we should be doing for our student-athletes,GÇ¥ he said. GÇ£This is a significant area of need for our student-athletes. We donGÇÖt have locker room spaces, we donGÇÖt have academic spaces that our student-athletes need to be successful, to have a great experience GÇô and we need to address that.
GÇ£We have a strength facility thatGÇÖs only 10,000 square feet for 300-plus student-athletes, spirit squad, what have you. ItGÇÖs a need, something we need to have for this program to be successful. Notwithstanding what other schools are doing, what theyGÇÖre doing is great, but this is what we need at CU to be successful long-term.GÇ¥
In attending Pac-12 Conference football games over the past several years GÇô CU has been a Pac-12 member since 2011 GÇô Regent Sue Sharkey said she became aware of a facilities upgrades from GÇ£seeing cranes all over the placeGÇ¥ at football stadiums. GÇ£We need to get it done and we need to get it done now,GÇ¥ she said.
In addition to GeorgeGÇÖs presentation on Wednesday, the Regents heard from football coach Mike MacIntyre; menGÇÖs basketball coach Tad Boyle (via video); Kris Livingston, associate athletic director/student success; Miguel Rueda, head athletic trainer. The Regents also watched several video presentations from student-athletes in all sports speaking about their various facilities needs.
MacIntyre told the board he was GÇ£excitedGÇ¥ about the future of the university and CU football, but added, GÇ£ThereGÇÖs a ceiling weGÇÖll hit in recruiting if this (the facilities upgrade) if this not done.GÇ¥ He also said coaches he recruits against in the Pac-12 Conference have come into Colorado pursing in-state prospects and, because of CUGÇÖs current facilities, have questioned the schoolGÇÖs overall commitment to athletics. His first Buffs team finished 4-8 overall, 1-8 in the Pac-12 Conference.
Livingston told the Regents the athletic departmentGÇÖs academic support systemGÇÖs physical resources have shrunk over the last several years from 8,400 square feet to just over 5,000 square feet. By way of comparison to another Pac-12 member, OregonGÇÖs athletic department academic space is at 40,000 square feet. But Oregon also has nearly twice as many student-athletes as CUGÇÖs 340.
Rueda said the high performance sports center would help him and his staff better identify and treat student-athletes before minor injuries become major. The center, he added, GÇ£will allow for a program where our student-athletes will receiver world-class and holistic resources dedicated to helping them achieve.GÇ¥
George said the proposalGÇÖs next phase is a presentation to architects. He hopes ground can be broken this spring, with a completion date of the 2015-16 academic-athletic year. The upgrades, he said, will put the Buffs GÇ£on par with the best out thereGÇ¥ and will GÇ£set us up for the long-term and put an end for any Band-Aid type improvements to get us through the short-term. WeGÇÖll be set for a long time.GÇ¥
Contact: BG.Brooks@Colorado.EDU