Samford University in Birmingham, Ala., has begun work on $65 million in facility upgrades that will result in a modernized recreation, wellness and athletic complex.
The university says the Campus Recreation, Wellness and Athletic Complex will consist of four separate buildings that total 165,000 square feet. The center will provide students and employees with expanded opportunities to improve physical fitness and mental wellness as well as new spaces for campus events and student gatherings. Additional facilities will provide new practice and training spaces for the university’s 17 Division I athletic teams.
The first phase of the project—the Health and Wellness Center—was completed this spring. The new health and wellness space is on the first floor of the Dwight and Lucille Beeson Alumni Center.
Renovations of Seibert Hall and Bashinsky Field House are also underway. Seibert Hall is being redesigned to include two basketball courts, a new multiuse court, studios for fitness classes, an e-sports studio, dance studios, weight and cardio machines, a multipurpose workout area, lounge areas, a coffee house and a 24-hour convenience store.
Bashinsky Field House is being renovated into a dedicated facility for Samford student-athletes, including new training and practice spaces.
A third building will be constructed adjacent to Seibert Hall and encompass 20,000 square feet of recreation and event space. The new facility will have a suspended indoor track, additional basketball courts and cardio spaces, sound and staging to host campus events, a catering kitchen, covered outdoor athletic space, a pedestrian walkway and a covered balcony that overlooks the football field.
The project is expected to be completed in 2024.
