A renovated Gutterson Field House for the University of Vermont hockey team and a new basketball venue for the Catamounts are at the heart of a multi-purpose center recently greenlighted by the UVM Board of Trustees. Jeff Schulman, UVM's athletic director, spoke with VPR about the project.
The new facilities will be built where the Gutterson Field House currently stands, keeping the athletic facilities on campus.
“There really is sort of a strong emotional connection that our community, in the broadest sense, feels to Gutterson Field House — to 'the Gut.' ... I refer to it as our Fenway Park,” Schulman said.
According to Schulman, the total cost of the multi-purpose center project is around $95 million and the athletic department has agreed to raise a minimum of $30 million.
"The remainder of the project will be financed through other university sources, including deferred maintenance funds and debt financing, as well," Shulman added.
So could this affect UVM students' tution rates? Schulman said there will likely be "additional student fees" related to the multi-purpose center project, though the amount is currently unknown.
“It’s an investment that our community really needs to make,” said Schulman.
The core of UVM's athletic facilities was built back in 1963, explained Schulman, and at that time the university had around 3,000 students — today, UVM’s undergraduate population is upwards of 10,000.
However, Schulman said, seating capacity in the new athletic arenas will remain roughly the same in order to keep seats filled during games.
And Schulmann noted that in addition to the athletic uses, the new multi-purpose center will have academic space, study lounges and even a juice bar.
Schulman said construction of the multi-purpose center should be underway this winter, with portions of it opening to the public during the 2020-2021 academic year.
