UT Announces Martinez Sports Center Expansion Plans

The University of Tampa has announced it will undergo a two-phase expansion and renovation project of the Martinez Sports Center that will add or renovate 57,000 square feet into multi-use classrooms, labs, faculty offices and athletics space.

The first phase of the two-phase project will see a second floor added to the northeast corner of the current building, which faces N. Boulevard on the west side of the UT campus. A new building façade will be completed to integrate the building with the rest of campus. The second phase includes the construction of a new, two-story building that will be attached to the southwest corner of the Martinez Sports Center.

The total cost of the project has not yet been finalized, but it is being funded primarily by gifts to the university along with some university resources.

Phase I -- Health Sciences, Human Performance and General Academic Space
Starting immediately UT will construct a second story on the northeast corner of the Martinez Sports Center (next to and above the current main entrance). The new and renovated space will total approximately 23,000 square feet that will contain 19 offices, eight classrooms and six labs, and will be used primarily for general academic purposes and for the Department of Health Sciences and Human Performance.

The center will receive a new brick façade that is consistent with the look and style of other campus buildings, and the main entrance will be reconfigured and updated. Phase I is expected to be completed by early 2012. Current facilities on the first floor of the Martinez Center will be minimally impacted.

UT President Ronald L. Vaughn said the project will add much-needed academic space to campus while also providing a renovation to the Martinez Sports Center.

“We’re maximizing existing space on campus and enhancing UT’s strong presence in health sciences and human performance, which is of growing interest to our student population,” Vaughn said.

The contractor for Phase I is Crossroads Construction of Lakeland.

Phase II -- Athletics, Athletic Training and ROTC Space
During Fall 2011 UT will begin construction on a two-story building attached to the southwest corner of the Martinez Sports Center that will house facilities for athletics, athletic training and ROTC. This space is the former site of the Tampa Bay Community Network, and will add 34,000 square feet to campus. The space will contain expanded athletic training and treatment spaces, additional locker room spaces, Athletic Department offices, study rooms, an expanded laundry and storage spaces. Selected other adjoining spaces in the Martinez Sports Center will also be renovated.

Phase II will be completed in the fall of 2012.

Additionally, UT’s ROTC program will be moved to new facilities on the second floor of this space. The current ROTC building, located just north of the Sykes College of Business, will be redesigned and renovated for use as a general academic building.

The contractor for Phase II will be determined.

Other Summer 2011 Expansion and Renovation Projects

Several faculty offices around campus will be renovated due to 11 new faculty and instructional staff positions for Fall 2011.
A new microbiology lab with instrumentation will be created in the new Cass Science Annex.
Current nursing facilities in Walker Hall will be expanded and redesigned to include new labs, classroom and assessment spaces. Sophisticated new simulators and other equipment will also be added to support clinical learning and student skill development.
Classrooms, office and lab spaces in North Walker Hall and the R. K. Bailey Arts Studio will be renovated.
A new electron microscope research lab is being developed in the Plant Hall science wing to support faculty/student research and learning.
A new barbecue food venue will be installed in the Stadium Center food court, and Einstein Bros. Bagels in the Vaughn Center will be upgraded for better selection and service.