GETTYSBURG, Pa. - Though the 2009-10 season produced a number of memorable moments, one event transpired away from the playing field that trumped them all.
The Bullets got a new home.
The Center for Athletics, Recreation, and Fitness – a spectacular 55,000-square foot facility that stands adjacent to the Bream Wright Hauser Athletic Complex – officially opened over three phases during the 2009-10 academic year. The Center – and the improvements made to the surrounding facilities in Bream Wright Hauser – provides Gettysburg student-athletes with one of the more impressive all-purpose venues in Division III.
It all started on Oct. 4, 2007, when the College's Board of Trustees voted unanimously to approve the project. Ground was broken on May 29, 2008 and by the time students returned from summer break in the fall of 2009, Phase One was complete. The opening phase included the construction of a new-and-improved athletic training room, featuring a HydroWorx therapy pool with an underwater treadmill, as well as a massive renovation of Bream Gymnasium. In addition, new meeting rooms were added in Bream Wright Hauser while the athletic department's offices were also refurbished.
An opening ceremony was held for Phase Two of the Center on Oct. 13, 2009, complete with remarks from Athletic Director
David Wright and President Janet Morgan Riggs '77 and even a performance from members of the Marching Band. The second phase featured the opening of an expansive 10,000-square-foot weight and fitness room, a student lounge known as “The Dive,” a multi-purpose room for aerobics, yoga, Pilates, spinning, and martial arts classes; a bouldering wall, and a large lobby area to host multiple functions.
Finally, the third and final phase concluded during the winter of 2010 with a spacious new natatorium - the Gettysburg College Bullets Pool - and a soaring climbing wall located inside a glass tower next to the building's entrance. The natatorium, which occupies some 30,000 square feet, features a pool with eight competition lanes, a five-lane warm-up pool, as well as a spectator gallery. It hosted three home swimming meets to close the season, including the inaugural meet against Washington & Lee University on Jan. 16.
A dedication ceremony for the Center took place April 30, with remarks from James M. Weaver '64 (chair of the board of trustees) as well as President Riggs, Robert Ortenzio '79 (major donor and chief executive officer of Select Medical Corporation), and Patrice Boucher '10 (co-captain of the women's swimming team).
The Center, which is open to all students and staff, was a smashing success in its first year of operation. In the months of November and December, there was a 92 percent increase in fitness area usage from 2008 to 2009 (from 7,627 to 14,686). From January through Spring Break in 2010, an average of 700 people per weekday used the Center, due in large part to the many fitness opportunities that are now available. In fact, aerobic class offerings doubled from fall of 2008 to fall of 2009 (seven to 16). An all-time high of 950 users came through the doors in one day.
Center Links
Center Landing Page
Phase Two Opening Ceremony Photos
Center Construction Photos
Center Videos
Athletic Training Room Feature in O&B Newsletter
Photos of New Athletic Training Room
Gettysburg College Bullets Pool Photos
