[S]OUTH BURLINGTON — The multipurpose sports venue UVM has been looking to build for the better part of two decades could finally have a home in South Burlington.
Two locations are proposed for the arena: either on the site of Rick Marcotte Central School on Williston Road or somewhere on the University Mall property. Both spots will be considered equally, and the arena would cost $50 million to $60 million, said South Burlington City Manager Kevin Dorn.
UVM and the city announced a joint working group Tuesday at a news conference at the DoubleTree Hotel. The group will look at how the proposed 23,000-square-foot facility could be folded into the plans to build a downtown marketplace and city center in South Burlington on the south side of Williston Road and east of the mall.
Two years ago, UVM announced a concept for a multipurpose center that would renovate and augment the existing athletic facilities on campus. With this new plan, the school would repurpose Patrick Gymnasium and Gutterson Fieldhouse for fitness centers instead of dedicated arenas, said Thomas Gustafson, vice president for university relations and administration.
“The other big need we have is additional recreation, wellness and fitness space for our students,” he said. “It will give us a lot more square footage to use for the student body as opposed to athletic contests.”
The current basketball arena, Patrick Gym, and the ice hockey rink were both built in 1963. Patrick hasn’t seen major renovations since the 1990s, and the “Gut,” as it is affectionately known, was last renovated in 2005 when it got new glass, boards and lighting, and a new sound system and scoreboard.
The name used in animated renderings of the venue — Catamount Center — is a placeholder. Many aspects of the project are fluid, said UVM and city officials, and often with projects like this large donors will vie to get their name on the building.
The university has been soliciting donations for the previously planned project, which will go toward the new facility in South Burlington should it be approved, Gustafson said. UVM has raised a “modest amount” for the previous project, he said.
“As we talk to potential donors about this, just in the last few days, there’s been a very, very positive response,” he said. “One of the barriers we’ve had to getting donations is getting our donors to believe it’s actually going to happen.”
Students react
Should the new arena be built on Williston Road, students would have to travel about a mile to get to it from campus. The distance made some students wary, but they said the extra space for a fitness center would outweigh the downsides — as long as the project doesn’t hike up their tuition bill.
Patrick Gym is showing its age, said Jaffa Olson, a UVM senior. “I think, honestly, my high school gym was nicer,” she said.
Yet, she said the proposed location for the new new construction could keep students away. “They’re already struggling with getting students to games,” she said. “I don’t know if moving it farther away from campus will help that.”
She knew about the earlier plans to build a similar multipurpose arena on campus and she said she’s happy to hear that Gutterson Fieldhouse would be converted into more fitness center space.
Elizabeth Pugliese, also a senior, agreed with Olson. “There are 10,000 undergrads here, and the fitness center gets really crowded,” she said after a workout.
Others are not so worried about the distance. “A lot of students here are hard-core hockey fans,” said Riley Phillips, a recent UVM transfer student. “People will find a way.”
Next steps
After the working group looks at as many aspects of the project as possible, it will deliver a report to Dorn and UVM President Tom Sullivan by Aug. 15, officials said. After that, the report will move to the UVM board of trustees and the South Burlington City Council.
If the city does decide to go through with the project, a public vetting process will start. Dorn said that ultimately, the voters would need to approve funding for the project on a ballot either in November or next year in March.
“There’s a lot to happen between the time the feasibility study gets released and a shovel gets in the ground,” he said. “But we will push.”
