The north campus of the University of Waterloo will look a little bit different come next fall.
With a $41-million expansion to connect the Student Life Centre (SLC) and Physical Activities Complex (PAC) well underway, ground will be broken on a new 70,654 square foot field house by January.
The field house will be constructed just north of Warrior Field and will connect to the west side of the existing Columbia Icefield (CIF) building.
The $16.5 million project with funding commitment from the university will create a multi-activity field-turf building.
“Our priority in the Department of Athletics and Recreation is to enhance the student experience and through the addition of recreational space, we hope to be meeting that goal,” said director of athletics and recreation Roly Webster.
“Our students have a large need for more space to take a break from academics and the construction of the field house will provide a means for more recreational opportunities.”
The focus of the field house will be for programmatic and drop-in recreation use but will also be a space for the Warriors varsity field teams to train and practice.
Head coach of men’s hockey and associate director Brian Bourque realizes the potential and impact it will have, not only on the success of the varsity programs but the overall benefit of the student body at UWaterloo.
“It’s a great addition for our varsity programs across the department, giving our teams a realistic playing surface to train on year-round,” mentioned Bourque.
“It’s also encompassing of the entire student population giving them another great space to participate in intramurals or a variety of other Warrior Recreation programming we offer.”
Manager of intramurals and sport clubs Adam Steeves is also highly anticipating the field house and benefits it will provide those programs.
“This facility will greatly enhance our ability to provide diverse recreational opportunities for the University of Waterloo community all year around,” said Steeves. “The field house gives us the capacity to expand on our intramural and club program offerings while impacting the overall user experience.”
The field house is just one of multiple phases in the works to continue to expand and build recreational space. It can be described as a Lego project, with the hope of many more pieces to come in the future.
Those other pieces include a new bleacher building surrounding Warrior Field as well as a new arena and pool.
All of course are conceptual at the time, but Webster mentions that working with community partners and organizations, and the overall support from the university, will be key driving forces.
“We’ve had incredible leadership from our senior administration and student associations across campus. Without their support, none of this would be possible and we look forward to future expansion plans coming to fruition.
The wellbeing of our students is at the forefront at our university and delivering this necessity requires additional recreational space. These spaces and student engagement opportunities ultimately create a campus community, contributing to a positive and successful student experience,” concludes Webster.
