Call it a victory for Heather Lyke.
Pitt is set to unveil on Tuesday the plans for Lyke’s most ambitious project in her not-yet three years as Pitt’s athletic director.
Victory Heights is Lyke’s vision for a total reconstruction of the athletic facilities in the upper portion of Pitt’s campus and has been integrated as part of the university’s facilities master plan.
Lyke first unveiled her vision in April of 2018. At that point, funding did not exist for the expansive project that is to include an expansion of the Petersen Sports Complex for baseball, softball and soccer, a replacement for Fitzgerald Field House to house gymnastics, volleyball and wrestling, new indoor and outdoor track facilities, a new field for women’s lacrosse and a new on-campus indoor practice facility and new parking facilities to replace the loss of the OC Lot.
Here’s a rundown of the highlights of the ideas, as described in the school’s 2019 campus master plan, before Lyke unveils the full details:
• New, 3,000-seat multi-purpose arena for gymnastics, volleyball and wrestling to be built where the OC Lot currently sits. Initial plans call for the building to have a flat roof with a rooftop field that could be used for practices and women’s lacrosse.
New multi-purpose indoor practice facility to be built where the east wing of Trees Hall currently sits. This practice facility would replace the sports dome and some of the Cost Center’s current capacity and provide a dedicated indoor practice space for lacrosse, soccer, baseball and softball.
• New 300-meter indoor track to be built adjacent to the Cost Center, with additional parking.
• New 400-meter outdoor track to be built on the terrace below the Cost Center where the spots dome currently sits.
• Expansion of the Petersen Sports Complex, with additional seating, more restrooms, arger bullpens, more workout and office space
• Improvements to Trees Pool, including deepening the diving Pitt, with a long-term goal of replacing or fully renovating Pitt’s major aquatic facility.
• A new student recreation and wellness center, to be built where O’Hara Garage currently stands. This facility will replace those in the Petersen Events Center, opening up that area for expansion of athletics facilities there.
The full facilities master plan can be found here: https://issuu.com/upitt/docs/campus-plan-draft_2-public
