The new $40.4 million Roadrunner Athletics Center of Excellence (RACE) has opened on the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) campus. RACE is the latest milestone in the university’s multi-tiered project that will enable the success of student-athletes and provide state-of-the-art recreational facilities to the San Antonio Community.
RACE will serve as the central hub of UTSA Athletics and help attract Division I student-athletes to the school. The nearly 95,000-sf facility spans more than 10 acres near the southwest corner of the UTSA Main Campus. It will feature multiple practice fields (one synthetic field and one natural grass field), academic spaces, a sports medicine center, strength and conditioning facilities, locker rooms, meeting rooms, a student-athlete lounge, and office space for coaches and administrative staff.
SEE ALSO: Austin FC’s Q2 Stadium completes
The project features an efficient design that concentrates on athletes’ use and experience while maximizing useable space with a column-free interior. The extensive use of concrete and glass helps bring natural light and views of the campus into the building.
“Previously, facilities were spread throughout the campus and even off-campus. RACE provides the opportunity for student-athletes to optimize every minute of their day,” said Austin Welsh, Populous Associate Principal, in a release.
Upcoming phases of the project will include the addition of a covered pavilion over the synthetic turf practice field and the construction of a facility at the university’s Park West Campus. Populous designed the project in collaboration with MarmonMok. Joeris General Contractors served as the construction firm.
Related Stories
Higher Education | Sep 18, 2024
Modernizing dental schools: The intersection of design and education
Page's John Smith and Jennifer Amster share the how firm's approach to dental education facilities builds on the success of evidence-based design techniques pioneered in the healthcare built environment.
Libraries | Sep 12, 2024
How space supports programming changes at university libraries
GBBN Associate Sarah Kusuma Rubritz, AIA, uses the University of Pittsburgh's Hillman Library to showcase how libraries are transforming to support students’ needs.
University Buildings | Sep 4, 2024
UC San Diego’s new Multidisciplinary Life Sciences Building will support research and teaching in both health and biological sciences
The University of California San Diego has approved plans for a new Multidisciplinary Life Sciences Building, with construction starting this fall. The 200,000-sf, six-level facility will be the first building on the UC San Diego campus to bridge health science research with biological science research and teaching.
University Buildings | Aug 12, 2024
Planning for growing computer science programs
Driven by emerging AI developments and digital transformation in the business world, university computer science programs are projected to grow by nearly 15% by 2030.
Education Facilities | Aug 4, 2024
A former supersonic wind tunnel becomes a new educational facility for transportation design
The Mullin Transportation Design Center at ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, Calif., provides access for full-scale vehicular models, replicating a professional design studio.
University Buildings | Aug 1, 2024
UC Riverside’s student health center provides an environment on par with major medical centers
The University of California, Riverside's new Student Health and Counseling Center (SHCC) provides a holistic approach to wellness for students throughout the UC Riverside campus. Designed by HGA and delivered through a design-build partnership with Turner Construction Company, SHCC provides healthcare offerings in an environment on par with major medical centers.
Student Housing | Jul 31, 2024
The University of Michigan addresses a decades-long student housing shortage with a new housing-dining facility
The University of Michigan has faced a decades-long shortage of on-campus student housing. In a couple of years, the situation should significantly improve with the addition of a new residential community on Central Campus in Ann Arbor, Mich. The University of Michigan has engaged American Campus Communities in a public-private partnership to lead the development of the environmentally sustainable living-learning student community.
Adaptive Reuse | Jul 30, 2024
Empty mall to be converted to UCLA Research Park
UCLA recently acquired a former mall that it will convert into the UCLA Research Park that will house the California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy at UCLA and the UCLA Center for Quantum Science and Engineering, as well as programs across other disciplines. The 700,000-sf property, formerly the Westside Pavilion shopping mall, is two miles from the university’s main Westwood campus. Google, which previously leased part of the property, helped enable and support UCLA’s acquisition.
Smart Buildings | Jul 25, 2024
A Swiss startup devises an intelligent photovoltaic façade that tracks and moves with the sun
Zurich Soft Robotics says Solskin can reduce building energy consumption by up to 80% while producing up to 40% more electricity than comparable façade systems.
Great Solutions | Jul 23, 2024
41 Great Solutions for architects, engineers, and contractors
AI ChatBots, ambient computing, floating MRIs, low-carbon cement, sunshine on demand, next-generation top-down construction. These and 35 other innovations make up our 2024 Great Solutions Report, which highlights fresh ideas and innovations from leading architecture, engineering, and construction firms.
