Construction began this week on Georgetown’s Multi-Sport Facility, which will accommodate intercollegiate and intramural athletics starting in fall 2005. The Georgetown University Board of Directors allocated the use of $7.5 million for the first phase of the project, to resurface Harbin Field, which is now utilized for football and men’s lacrosse.
This preliminary phase will involve site grading, utility relocations, the construction of a south fence and wall and creation of a new synthetic playing surface. While the field is scheduled to be ready in time to accomodate the upcoming football season, the timetable for the completion of the rest of the project remains uncertain.
“Things are forming very rapidly,” said Director of Athletics Facilities and Operations Charles Kennedy. “Not everything is written in stone yet.”
According to Director of Yates Field House James Gilroy, the 4,500 capacity Multi-Sport Facility will become the home of men’s and women’s lacrosse, football, and men’s and women’s soccer.
“Eventually, the University hopes to move weight rooms and offices there, which will provide an opportunity to renovate McDonough and then Yates as well,” he said.
Plans for the facility describe its architectural style as American Gothic to match the character of the campus, with red brick and four Gothic entryways helping to integrate it with surrounding buildings. The site will be an improvement upon the existing Harbin Field, incorporating new stands, a two-level press box, locker rooms, video and conference rooms, training room and a new scoreboard. The new construction will also reduce the heavy use of Kehoe Field, which is currently the only all-weather synthetic playing field on campus.
According to a University press release cited on Georgetown’s athletics website, “The facility will be built in a two-phase sequence to minimize the effect on game schedules, to allow for greater integration among facility projects and to allow more time to continue fund-raising efforts.”
However, the University remains reluctant to discuss specific details about further phases of the project.
“Future plans for the facility are pending fundraising as well as necessary zoning and regulatory approvals,” Assistant Vice President for Communications Julie Green-Bataille commented. “No timetable has been set for the completion of future phases.”
Thus far, $12 million has been raised through alumni and parent donations toward the project, which will cost an estimated $22.5 million.
