Two Hastings+Chivetta-designed projects win NIRSA awards

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Student recreation projects at the University of Utah and State University of New York (SUNY) Cortland each won 2016 NIRSA Outstanding Sports Facilities Awards.

Both Hastings+Chivetta-designed facilities, the buildings are recognized for their excellence in architectural design, functionality and how well the facility meets its intended purpose. Outstanding Sports Facilities and are considered a standard by which other collegiate recreational facilities should be measured.

The George S. Eccles Student Life Center at the University of Utah is a building that is reflective of its geographic surroundings. The interior color scheme of orange and red hues echo the desert landscape to the south, and the angular surfaces found throughout the building are the design team’s modern interpretation of the mountains surrounding the university.

The new building was voted Best Facility on Campus by students, and has been enormously popular, even crashing the University servers on opening day. The building has seen a nearly 150% increase in usage, and aquatics has increased by 130%.

The new Student Life Center at SUNY Cortland doubled its daily participation use of the facility by creating a space for both physical and social recreation. The signature feature of the building is a three-lane 1/5-mile suspended jogging track with a 20-inch grade change to mimic hills. The ADA-accessible track runs the perimeter of the facility and features exterior views in all four directions and interior views into every major space of the building.

The facility also includes many new themed, specialty fitness areas. A spinning room is equipped with an interactive lighting system, sound system and a 124-inch diagonal flat screen. A mind/body room has track lighting and more than 900 LED lights to mimic stars. A combatives room is equipped with heavy bags, a speed bag, TRX mounts and floor pads for martial arts programming.