IMA expansion begins
By Steve Hill
University Week
The new addition to the 33-year-old IMA building will be the prominent wing as passerbys see it from Montlake Blvd. The project will be completed in August 2003.
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An IMA expansion project that began earlier this month should result in one of the best student recreational athletics facilities in the nation, according to UW officials.
“I think that we'll have a facility as good as anybody in the West,” said longtime IMA Director John Pariseau. “Some of the bigger schools in the nation might have more square footage, but we'll be in good shape.”
UW students and employees looking to get in equally good shape will benefit from the additional 100,000 square feet at the facility that will include more windows to take advantage of sweeping Lake Washington and Cascade Mountains views, cutting edge technology, and air conditioning. The new wing will connect with the northwest quadrant of the original facility and stretch toward Montlake Boulevard.
In addition, 22,000 square feet of the existing structure will be renovated with similar goals of taking advantage of the nearby scenery, adding more workout space, more comfortable conditions and the infrastructure necessary to take full advantage of high-tech advances in exercise and recreation.
“It's been a long haul, but this is going to be really first class,” Pariseau said. “My staff is really excited.”
The $44 million project - which is scheduled for completion in August 2003 - will add the following to the 33-year-old building:
Tom Bauer, from BOORA Architects of Portland, says the expansion and renovation project is meant to accomplish some very specific goals beyond increasing space.
“The design is meant to play off continuing trends in student recreation facilities,” he said. “It's meant to be a student gathering place - a place to hang out, socialize and study. It's not just for exercise and recreation.”
For example, the building will include study areas that are wired for Internet access. Students will be able to plug in a laptop computer and surf the Web. Or, through help from the IMA and Computing and Communications, they may be able to access a personal workout Web page to keep track of their exercise routines.
Another goal for the new construction, according to Bauer, is to add a feeling of energy to the facility.
“It's meant to be very light and transparent both from inside looking out and outside looking in,” Bauer said. “The building is designed to express the energy and activity happening on the inside to the outside. And it's also about letting daylight in, which is exactly what the existing building doesn't do.”
Pariseau is quick to give much of the credit for the project to the student body. In multiple surveys UW students indicated a willingness to pay higher fees for a better facility.
“We couldn't do this without the students,” Pariseau said. “They are the ones paying for this. It's their facility.”
In fact, a fee of $35 per student per quarter - to be assessed near the completion of the project, likely in winter quarter of 2003 - will fund the project.
The project will also include a renovation of the sports field immediately north of the IMA. The old turf will be replaced with a synthetic surface similar to the one recently installed in Husky Stadium. The surface will include three soccer or flag football fields and the area will be lighted to provide a more flexible recreation schedule. The golf driving range will also receive a face-lift.
Despite the scope of the project, the IMA will remain open for business throughout the two-year project.
“There might be minor inconveniences along the way,” according to Pariseau. “But for the most part we will be open for business as usual.”
In fact, the locker rooms will never be closed during the construction process; classes and other programming offerings won't change a bit; and the swimming pool and fitness rooms will basically be unaffected.