Georgia State Athletic Director Cheryl Levick revealed the next steps of the Athletics Master Plan to The Signal Wednesday, citing three focused projects.
The next three focuses of the plan are the football strength and conditioning facility to be attached to the football practice facility, an auxiliary basketball and volleyball practice facility and a new academic research facility for the student athletes, according to Levick.
Levick said the approach to the Master Plan is that of pulling and pushing the puzzle pieces.
“That [plan] book was designed so we can pull out parts when we have the money or we have the priority,” Levick said.
Levick said the football strength and conditioning facility currently looks like the first of the three projects to be completed as the funding for the $2 million cost of the facility is halfway complete.
Levick did acknowledge the football facility was not originally in the plan, but it became a necessity.
“We thought this weight room would be sufficient that we built here, but it’s not,” Levick said referencing the weight room in the Sports Arena. “It’s fine, and it’s safe. It’s just small. So, we need to get a bigger one just for football over there so it’s close to practice facility.”
Levick said the auxiliary basketball and volleyball practice facility would be located next to the Sports Arena in the building that used to be the aquatics center. Levick said they are still in the design and funding phase of the project.
“We’ll finally have an auxiliary gym that can handle men’s basketball and volleyball together,” Levick said.
The reconfigured academic research center is also in those phases, Levick said.
Levick did not specify how quickly donations were coming in for the projects, but that donors have specific areas where they want their donations to go, such as the football weight room or academic research facility, and Athletics respects their wishes.
“We just don’t have enough donors that are huge $10 million dollar donors,” Levick said, “so we’re being smart and building as we can fundraise.”
“The faster we can get it in the better, but it really is fundraising driven,” Levick said on a timeline of these projects. Levick said architects are working on all three projects.
When asked about Panthersville, the home of several of Georgia State’s sports, Levick said Athletics has looked at land but has not found anything sufficient for getting the complex closer to the Downtown campus.
“We’ve looked at more chunks of land then you can imagine,” Levick said. “They’re just deemed too small or too dirty in terms of the oil and things that have been in the soil…we’ve yet to find the right match where we can get at least 10 acres and get everything moved here.” Levick said.
Levick said she supports the frustrations students have with Panthersville being far from campus and the struggle to get there at times like rush hour, when several games are scheduled.
“The minute we can find any land or money to move it down here, I would do it in a heartbeat,” Levick said.
Parts of the Master Plan that have been completed include the GSU Sand Volleyball Complex and the men’s and women’s basketball locker rooms.
Levick said since the locker rooms have been completed, they won’t be touched as other renovations to the Sports Arena take place.
The Master Plan was announced May 31, 2012.
To see Georgia State Athletics’ full Master Plan, click here.
