NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Representing the next step in the Vandy United campaign, Vanderbilt University today unveiled artists’ renderings for multiple cornerstone projects and provided further details and timelines for an effort that will redefine the future of Vanderbilt Athletics.
“Vandy United represents our vision for what is possible for Vanderbilt Athletics, as well as our commitment to bring that vision to life,” said Candice Lee, vice chancellor for athletics and university affairs and athletic director. “After months of hard work to create and refine designs that reflect and honor who we are as a university, these initial renderings are another important step in our journey. Much work remains to transform renderings into reality, but it is easier today to see where we are headed.”
Developed over months of intense collaboration with Populous, master architect for the project, the renderings lay out an ambitious vision for reimagining the athletics footprint on campus.
Publicly announced in March, Vandy United is an unprecedented $300 million investment in athletics. The effort commits to enhancing the experience of every Vanderbilt student-athlete and to further strengthening bonds with alumni, fans and the Nashville community. The university and Populous employed those principles as each project’s functional and aesthetic foundation.
“Bold action requires inspiration and imagination, and I am pleased to see the spirit underlying Vandy United come to life in these renderings,” Chancellor Daniel Diermeier said. “Vanderbilt’s mission is to bring together talented people and provide them with the tools and supportive environment to grow and realize their potential over the course of a lifetime. This requires ongoing investments. As we take the next steps with Vandy United, these plans depict not just new buildings but this university’s enduring commitment to provide student-athletes with the space to excel and grow as members of one community.”
Vanderbilt also released additional details regarding the projects:
Basketball operations center and north end zone stadium upgrades
- Located in current north end zone of Vanderbilt Stadium
- Multi-floor building with two practice gyms spanning more than 90,000 square feet
- New student-athlete locker rooms and lounges
- New weight room
- New athletic training facility
- Premium hospitality areas
- New videoboard to enhance football game day experience
- New premium seating in addition to loge boxes for football game days
- Visiting football locker room
- New north concourse expansion connecting Vanderbilt Stadium’s east and west concourses
- Convenient access to Memorial Gymnasium
South end zone facility
- Replacing current south end zone seating bowl of Vanderbilt Stadium
- Multi-floor building spanning more than 130,000 square feet
- Football game day locker room
- Student-athlete training table and dining facility, five times larger than current dining facility
- New diverse premium seat offerings for football game days, including living room boxes, loge boxes, club seating, field-level seating, founders’ suites, club suites and open-air tailgate suites
- Renovated concourse twice as large as current footprint, also doubling the number of concession stands with expanded offerings
- New videoboard and stadium acoustics system
Football operations center and expanded McGugin Center
- Expanding current square footage of McGugin Center by more than 175 percent
- New academic center doubling the size of current student-athlete academic center
- Football locker room and lounge area
- Football weight room
- All-sports athletic training room to more than double in size
- Hydrotherapy and recovery areas
- Student-athlete nutrition stations
- New sport science lab
- Team meeting rooms
- Coaches’ offices
- New Olympic sports weight room featuring more than 150 percent more square footage than existing weight room
- New Olympic sports locker rooms, with more than twice the space of current footprint
Football Indoor practice facility
- Situated on footprint of current football practice field
- More than 100,000 square feet
- 120-yard artificial turf football field
- Fully conditioned, which facilitates year-round training
Vanderbilt will continue working with Populous to refine and finalize design for each project. This includes the ongoing exploration of options for enhancing Vanderbilt’s baseball facilities and tennis complex.
In order to break ground in fall 2022, Vanderbilt is focused on several required preliminary steps, including the demolition of Parmer Field House in the north end zone and construction of a new utility plant that will supply power to the new buildings. These efforts will begin during the first quarter of 2022.
To learn more about the Vandy United campaign or to make a gift, visit vucommodores.com/vandyunited.
