With the new, state-of-the-art Zierk Athletic Center nearing completion, St. Mark’s plans to continue upgrading the school’s athletic facilities by redoing the Ralph B. Rodgers Natatorium and renovating the wrestling room.
The plan is to turn the area into a fieldhouse complete with indoor turf and space for teams to practice indoors during inclement weather or extreme heat.
The pool, first constructed in the 1970s and later renovated in the early 2000s, is no longer needed due to the new Levering Pool included in the new athletics complex.
“The old pool, which is approximately 40 yards by 25 yards, is going to get completely filled in and artificial turf is going to be put in there,” Assistant Athletic Director Josh Friesen said. “They’re going to take out the glass wall that’s in there currently, there will be glass in the corners but they’re going to brick the middle part so it’s a little more durable.”
The need for storage is a priority, as most sports-related gear is currently stored in a dimly lit strip under the concrete bleachers of the Norma and Lamar Hunt Family Stadium.
“On the east end, behind the football bleachers, they’re going to put more storage in there,” Friesen said. “We’re talking about blocking dummies for football and lacrosse goals for box lacrosse. They’ll have a number of things in there.”
Although the project is much smaller than the huge athletics complex project, many other things have to be done before the school can start to lay down turf and move in. Because the building was originally built almost 50 years ago, the walls and structures of the building need renovations and inspections to get up to code.
“They have to clean it out and make sure there’s no toxins in the old paint or asbestos or lead, so they have to go in and properly dispose stuff in order to get the building ready for renovations,” Friesen said “They have to put in…a lift to comply with the ADA, the American with Disabilities Act, so that a person with a disability can get to the second floor.”
While the bigger plan and early renovations have already started, there are still numerous small details and specifics that still need to be worked out.
However, goals are high for the athletic department after the new Zierk Athletic Center was met with high reviews, and now the department looks to do something that no similar school has done before.
“We got some really awesome stuff. Our maintenance and physical plant team needed improvements and they got it. This new facility is top of the line,” Friesen said. “But nobody, none of our peer schools have indoor artificial turf.”
In an ideal scenario, the fieldhouse is ready for use by July, but with so many details and specifics still needing to be worked out, the Athletic Department is unable to commit to a timeline. However, Friesen believes that once the space is completed it will become a valuable asset to the sports programs.
“It’ll be really, really functional for our teams and our P.E. classes…it’s going to be a useful space,” Friesen said. “It is going to be fought over for usage.”
