If you design-build it, they will come
Sports have earned a place in our culture, schools, and communities. And to build and maintain that infrastructure, public agencies seek professional services from the A/E/C industry to design and construct a variety of sporting and recreational facilities.
IMS is covering these public projects via in-depth research, daily project leads from RFPs and RFQs, and Advanced Notice information on upcoming opportunities.
These opportunities include landscape design services for cities to develop golf courses, Little League fields, and tennis courts. Public universities seek consultants to provide feasibility studies and condition analyses. Developers are constructing stadiums via design build and construction management-at-risk. And environmental engineers are tasked with reviewing the impacts from new athletic facilities.
Sports is more than leisure or luxury. There are mental, social, educational, and physical benefits. “It is imperative that schools continue to invest in the building and maintenance of physical activity facilities, not only to improve health for today’s youth, but to help ensure healthy outcomes for the generations to come,” noted the Center for Cities + Schools at the University of California, Berkeley.
These are some recent examples of sporting projects that IMS has provided to clients:
Pickleball, one of the fastest-growing sports in the country, is played on a small tennis-type court with paddles and a wiffle ball. A few cities are now building new courts and converting tennis courts for pickleball use.
In Massachusetts, the City of North Adams issued an RFP in early 2018 for design and construction administration services for improvements at the Noel Field Athletic Complex. The project included rejuvenated basketball courts, bocce ball courts, and pickleball courts (IMS 411897).
IMS covered an RFP from the City of Payson, Utah, in July 2018 for design build services for new pickleball and basketball courts at Memorial Park (IMS 434154).
Upgrades to Memorial Park include replacing tennis courts with pickleball and basketball courts. (Source: The City of Payson)
In Lacey, Wash., IMS published an Advanced Notice and an RFP for a feasibility study for a new indoor sports facility. The project included an indoor competition-worthy track, basketball/volleyball/pickleball courts, and baseball/fastpitch/soccer fields (IMS 418222-1).
Golf now comes in several convenient sizes: mini golf, disc golf, and the more traditional 1.68-inch round, dimpled ball. IMS has not yet covered a footgolf facility, but it has been tracking projects in the other formats.
The City of Greenville, S.C., released an RFP in July 2018 for design build services for a new 18-hole miniature golf course in McPherson Park (IMS 434155).
The City of Greensboro, N.C., issued an RFP in June 2018 for design and installation services for an 18-hole disc golf course for Keeley Park (IMS 431916).
IMS published an Advanced Notice and the subsequent RFP for a consultant to create a 10-year Parks and Recreation System Master Plan for the County of Broward, Fla. The project included determining the feasibility of a major sports complex and golf course (IMS 429025-1).
The City and County of Denver, Colo., issued an RFP in May 2018 for consultants to provide on-call golf course architecture design services for renovations of golf courses and golf features (IMS 429048).
The City Park, one of many in the Denver area. (Source: Denver Golf)
Public colleges and universities seek consultants to assist with the development of their sporting facilities. San Jose State University has an innovative plan for the site of its old track and field venue. The University is seeking a consultant to provide design build services for a new multilevel parking garage structure with 1,500 to 1,600 parking spaces. The project features a new track and field venue on the top deck of the parking structure (IMS 434917).
And IMS has covered several volleyball projects at institutions of higher learning.
Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Va., released an RFP in July 2018 for architectural and engineering services to renovate the existing basketball practice gymnasium into a competition volleyball facility (IMS 432819).
South Texas College published an RFQ in December 2017 for architectural services for the Pecan Campus Sand Volleyball Courts Project (IMS 409248).
The University of California, Berkeley, released an RFQ in April 2018 for an environmental analysis and impact assessments for the Levine-Fricke Softball Field Improvement project and the Clark Kerr Beach Volleyball Complex project. The project included analyses of potential aesthetic, noise, hydrology, and transportation impacts (IMS 423184).
Cricket is one of the most popular sports in the world, with 2.5 billion fans. But most Americans don’t know a googly from a grubber. Cricket facilities are not in high demand in the United States, but IMS has covered at least one project. The County of Henrico, Va., released an RFP in June 2018 for architectural and engineering services for converting three natural-grass multi-purpose fields into a cricket field at Deep Run Park (IMS 430399).
This googly might be more of a sandshoe crusher. That’s cricket.
Soccer also has worldwide appeal, thousands of players, and billions of fans. IMS has covered soccer projects to serve local recreational players, Division 1 college athletes, and professional players.
In Tennessee, the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County released an RFQ in June 2018 for construction management services for a new 500,000-SF, 27,500-seat major league soccer stadium (IMS 417400-2).
IMS covered an RFP from Clemson University in May 2018 for architectural and engineering services for a new 13,000-SF soccer operations complex on the main campus (IMS 426357).
The City of Cedar City, Utah, published an RFP in June 2018 for a feasibility study to determine whether newly acquired land is suitable for a significant soccer/multipurpose complex with parks, trails, concessions, and restrooms (IMS 426181-1).
Baseball is America’s Pastime, and cities step up to the plate to ensure their facilities are in good repair. For example, the Town of Cary, N.C., released an RFP in August 2017 for a Facility Condition Analysis and Design Feature Analysis for the Cary Tennis Park, USA Baseball National Training Complex, and WakeMed Soccer Park (IMS 396895).
The USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, NC. (Source: The Town of Cary)
Cities and schools take pride in their athletic facilities, and rely on landscape architects, engineers, and consultants for infrastructure improvements. IMS will continue to cover these projects – alongside 64 Disciplines and 12 Target Markets – to give A/E/C clients a home field advantage.