The College of the Holy Cross: Hart Center Expansion

The College of the Holy Cross

IMAGES COURTESY OF SASAKI

The phased expansion of the Hart Athletic Center at the top of Mount Saint James on the campus of the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA, was completed in December 2017. Eight distinct implementation phases allowed the college to maintain use of the building throughout construction.

The visible and transparent complex will provide a comprehensive complement of facilities, including strength and conditioning, sport medicine, and practice venues, aimed at improving performance, increasing awareness, and supporting all of the Crusaders’ Division 1 programs.

The college’s primary goal for the project was to elevate facilities for all programs to help recruiting and improve the development opportunities for student athletes.

The new 143,000-square-foot addition includes a 60-foot-high indoor turf practice facility, an auxiliary practice gymnasium, suites for basketball and administration offices, a dynamic strength and conditioning center, various meeting rooms, a new main entrance lobby, and new locker rooms, to ensure that all programs have dedicated team rooms.

The renovations will provide additional offices, a rowing studio, a new sport medicine suite, expanded accommodations for equipment handling, and a new locker room for the women’s ice hockey program, which is also now competing in Division 1.

The design, by Sasaki, completely transforms the original 1975 building, giving it a greater presence on campus and a renewed pride in the storied history of Holy Cross athletics.

This article originally appeared in the College Planning & Management June 2019 issue of Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • California K–12 District Finishes Renovations on Multi-Sport Stadium

    The Alameda Unified School District (AUSD) in Alameda, Calif., recently announced the completion of a renovation project on the Encinal Jr. & Sr. High School stadium, according to a news release. The district partnered with Quattrocchi Kwok Architects (QKA) and Bothman Construction on the facility, and funding came from Bond Measure B.

  • Chartwells Launches Campus Dining Evaluation Framework

    Contract food-service management provider Chartwells Higher Education recently announced the launch of BLUEPRINT, according to a news release. The evaluation framework was designed to provide a data-driven and customizable roadmap towards optimizing campus dining services and, by extension, the student experience.

  • Deferred Maintenance Issues Growing at Universities, Gordian Reports

    U.S. colleges and universities are falling increasingly behind on facilities maintenance and repair, according to Gordian’s 13th annual State of Facilities in Higher Education report. The deferred capital renewal burden has reached $156 per gross square foot, an 8% increase over the previous year.

  • South Carolina District Starts Construction on $50M Middle School Renovation

    The Aiken County Public School District in North Augusta, S.C., recently held a groundbreaking ceremony for the $50-million renovation and expansion of North Augusta Middle School, according to a news release. The project’s funding comes from the 2024 renewal of a one-cent sales tax approved by local voters.