Practice Facility On The Way

As has been hinted to in this blog for quite awhile, the University has decided to give JTIII his practice facility. The Hoya confirmed this morning that it will go where the tennis courts currently are located. Why so close to McDonough, you ask. Well, I can only hope that the plans put forth by the Hughs Group (see below) and Brailsford and Dunlavey don't become an issue for the neighbors. Anyway, this is certainly good news.

University Proposes Athletics Facility

The university recently proposed the construction of a new athletic practice facility, which, if approved by the local Advisory Neighborhood Commission next month, may bring Georgetown’s largely criticized athletic facilities closer to being on par with those of its Big East competitors. The proposal comes after months of discussions between university administrators concerning the plans. University spokesperson Julie Bataille said the university plans to erect a 90,000-square-foot, five-story facility on the site of the university’s tennis courts, near McDonough Gymnasium. The facility would house locker rooms, a sports medicine department, weight-training facilities, coaches’ and administrative offices and a basketball court, University Architect Alan Brangman said during a recent Advisory Neighborhood Commission meeting, according to The Georgetown Current. The facility would primarily be used by the men’s basketball team and would help to consolidate the athletic department, Brangman said. “There’s a strong belief that we would do much better if the locker rooms and offices were all located in one building, rather than subdivided,” Brangman said in the article. The proposal is set to be voted on by the ANC on Oct. 2 and D.C.’s Zoning Commission on Oct. 22. The university anticipates that construction of the project would commence after the completion of the new science facility, which is tentatively scheduled for 2010. Georgetown hopes to be granted a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certificate, which is awarded to the owners of environmentally friendly buildings, the article said.

http://www.thehoya.com/news/092107/news2.cfm

One would assume that this has been the reason for the delay in finalizing JTIII's extension. Let's hope we hear about that soon too! There has been no word on how this will be funded, but presumably the Board of Directors has already given it a green light. I suppose they figure the University won't have any trouble raising sufficient funds over the next three years. I know that the VBBs will certainly step up!