Athletic Business Magazine

Architectural Showcase - State-of-the-Art Facilities

Dordt College

Indoor Recreation Complex

Sioux Center, Iowa

As a young and growing private liberal arts institution in northwest Iowa, Dordt College has undergone a number of facility expansions and improvements in order to increase its enrollment.  One of the latest is its new indoor recreation complex, which rivals facilities available at many larger universities.

The center, which is actually an addition to an existing field house, serves a student population of more than 1,400 and an additional 500 community residents who hold private memberships.  The central focus of the building's interior is an open space enclosing a 200-meter running track as well as three multipurpose courts that can be adapted for basketball, volleyball and tennis.  Surrounding the track is a lobby area with a control station, three racquetball courts, a gymnastics area, a golf simulator, long jump areas, and batting cages.  The entire central space is divisible by an electrically operated curtain system.  Windows at each end of the running track provide natural light for this multi-use space.  A weight training room, an aerobic fitness room, an aerobic dance room, locker rooms and office space are also included in the facility.

The exterior design of the recreation complex is intended to blend with the overall flavor of the campus through the use of clean, horizontal lines.  A red-brick band along the bottom of the facility produces a strong horizontal effect, anchoring the structure to the ground, while limestone-colored modified stucco helps lighten the mass of raised portions of the gymnasium.  An overhang and canopy virtually hide the raised area from passing pedestrians' views.