The school engaged Sasaki to renovate and enhance their existing athletics center to accommodate their growing recreation, wellness, and athletics activities. The new addition and renovation to Adler draws meaningful connections between the building and the surrounding landscape, to better integrate the university’s recreation programs with the larger campus environment.

The use of brick and stone masonry integrates the addition with the existing Adler building, while relating to the predominant building palette of the campus.  Large areas of glazing allows for transparency and visibility into the building, showcasing fitness and other active programs within the recreation center.

The east addition serves as a main entrance and control point into the recreation center.  At the ground floor, an east-west circulation spine through the existing building connects the new entry lobby to a 2-court gym addition on the west side. Fitness and weights, spinning room, locker rooms, and concessions are located along the lower level concourse, and within Adler’s renovated central area.  Glazing along the upper concourse displays different activities in the multipurpose rooms and conference rooms.

The east addition also includes 6 large classrooms, offices and research space in two levels for the campus’ Kinesiology program. The program is organized into suites, with offices, reception space, flexible layout classrooms for up to 40-80 students, with dedicated support spaces that allow the classrooms to serve as laboratories for the program.

The west gymnasium addition houses a competition basketball court, overlaid over 2 practice courts for basketball and volleyball. Retractable bleacher seating, surrounding the court spaces, accommodate up to 2,000 seats. Adjacent to the gym are new varsity team locker rooms, official locker rooms, athletic training, storage spaces, and an athletic office suite with media/conference rooms.

Double height spaces at the entry lobby, gym overlook and fitness room enhance connectivity and transparency between spaces and levels, and provide informal gathering spaces in the building that are vital to the promotion of student life in the renovated building complex.