Ceremonial bulldozers and campus community mark the start of site work for the new fieldhouse west of Wolf Pack Park.
West of Wolf Pack Park (university campus), August 21, 2025
Final financing closed and a groundbreaking ceremony marked the start of site work for a new 72,000‑square‑foot fieldhouse west of Wolf Pack Park. Ceremonial bulldozers, students, athletes and campus leaders attended as organizers said fences will be installed and dirt‑moving will begin shortly. The facility is a pre‑engineered metal building with roughly 70‑yard indoor turf plus end zones, rolling garage doors for indoor‑outdoor use, and 70‑foot apex/60‑foot clear height. Funded through a public‑private partnership and a per‑credit student fee, the fieldhouse will serve all varsity programs, intramurals and student life with a flexible layout and fast construction timeline.
A ceremonial groundbreaking for a new fieldhouse took place Tuesday afternoon after the project cleared its last financial hurdle early that morning. With the final financing closed at 7 a.m., organizers signaled that site preparation will start next week on a roughly 200‑space parking lot just west of the existing practice area known as Wolf Pack Park.
The ceremony featured two large bulldozers that remained decorative for the event. Physical work will begin once temporary fencing is installed on Monday, and initial digging and earth moving are scheduled to follow. The first major construction step after removing the parking blacktop is to raise the lot’s ground level because it currently sits several feet below the base of Wolf Pack Park. That raised footprint will be built up to match the adjacent park level before the main structure arrives.
The structure is a pre‑engineered metal building being fabricated off site. Steel components will be shipped to the location and assembled on site in a manner likened to piecing together an erector‑set. Once the first steel arrives, crews expect the shell to begin taking visible shape within a few weeks. The finished interior will measure about 72,000 square feet, with an indoor field of roughly 70 yards in length plus end zones. The building will reach about 70 feet at its apex and will offer a 60‑foot clear span inside.
The fieldhouse will include rolling garage doors to allow seamless indoor‑outdoor transitions and adjacent practice areas. Interior space is being planned as a flexible layout with turf, a lobby, sport‑specific amenities such as netting and equipment bays, and room for intramural and student‑life uses including marching band practice. The intention is for the interior to function as a blank canvas that can adapt to multiple sports and campus needs.
The project uses a public‑private partnership funding model in which a private developer assumes much of the cost and risk and leases the facility back to the university. The bulk of funding was authorized after a student fee approval earlier this year. The fieldhouse is expected to be completed in summer 2026, approximately 18 months after that fee approval. The metal building erection phase is expected to be relatively fast — roughly 12 months from the start of assembly — although when that phase begins depends on the off‑site production and delivery schedule. Officials estimate the vertical build could begin around March, but emphasized that the date is contingent on when the fabricated building arrives.
Substantial dirt work will precede steel arrival to raise and prepare the site. After the earthwork, some activities will pause while waiting for the prefabricated building sections to be delivered. Once delivery is complete, assembly should accelerate and the structure is expected to rise quickly.
Because construction sits directly adjacent to Wolf Pack Park, both football and soccer practices will be affected. Temporary fences that change how practice areas are accessed are scheduled to go up on Sept. 2. The change will compress practice schedules inside the main stadium this fall, and university staff are coordinating use of alternate turf fields, including the John Sala Intramural Field, to accommodate teams and recreational users. The project team expects the fieldhouse to be available for team practice by the start of next season’s fall camp if the schedule holds.
The facility is being built to serve all 17 university sports programs, plus intramural and student‑life activities. Organizers say the new space should help recruiting and give teams the ability to practice indoors regardless of weather.
Several student‑athletes and campus representatives attended the ceremonial event; the site also featured a lighthearted photo moment noted at the ceremony. The developer described the project as unusually quick compared with typical multi‑year buildings, and called this one a potential model for future campus projects if stakeholders stay involved.
Temporary fences are scheduled to go up on Monday, with digging and site work expected to begin next week after fence installation.
The project is expected to be completed in summer 2026, pending delivery schedules and normal construction progress.
The build site is a roughly 200‑space parking lot directly west of the current practice area known as Wolf Pack Park.
Football and soccer practices will be impacted during construction. The school plans a packed schedule at the main stadium and may use the John Sala Intramural Field and other turf areas to meet team and recreational needs while work is underway.
The project uses a public‑private partnership model. A student fee approved earlier this year provides the majority of funding, while a private developer assumes much of the upfront cost and leases the facility back to the school.
Key features include a 72,000‑square‑foot pre‑engineered metal building, rolling garage doors for indoor‑outdoor flow, a turf playing surface about 70 yards long plus end zones, and a 70‑foot apex with a 60‑foot clear span inside.
| Feature | Detail |
|---|---|
| Size | 72,000 square feet |
| Building type | Pre‑engineered metal building |
| Field length | About 70 yards plus end zones |
| Height and clearance | 70 feet apex; 60‑foot clear span |
| Location | Former 200‑space parking lot west of Wolf Pack Park |
| Timeline | Site work next week; completion expected summer 2026 |
| Funding model | Public‑private partnership with student fee support |
| Practice impact | Compressed stadium schedules; alternate turf fields planned |
| Access for students | Available for all 17 sports, intramurals, and marching band |
| Construction sequence | Raise site grade → pause for building delivery → assemble steel → interior fit‑out |
Photo caption noted at the ceremony: Alphie, Wolfie Jr., and Luna posed at the groundbreaking site.
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