Flagler College cut the ribbon and opened the doors to its new Flagler Field Locker Room Facility Feb. 3, 2011. College President Dr. William T. Abare, Jr., Board of Trustees Chairman David Drysdale, Director of Athletics Jud Damon and the Peach Belt Conference Commissioner Dave Brunk spoke at the ceremony which was attended student-athletes, coaches, donors and local community members.
“The reason behind (the improvements to the Flagler Field Complex) was to enhance the competitive experience for our student-athletes, and that is the reason we do everything at Flagler College,” said Dr. Abare. “We don’t raise money; we don’t make improvements to academic programs just in isolation. We do it because we think that it is our responsibility as a college to make the experience the very best it can be for our students and our student-athletes.”
The project took just seven months to complete as the groundbreaking ceremony was held July 2, 2010. The facility will house Flagler College’s men’s and women’s soccer, baseball and softball team as well as a training room and an official’s room. Each locker room includes wooden lockers with a carpeted floor, three sofas and a plasma television. Multiple laundry areas are on site as well as showers.
The completion of this project will help the coaches, of the respective sports, be able to recruit student-athletes and attract postseason championship tournaments. It also signifies the College’s commitment to NCAA Division II and meets requirements of facility improvements requested by the NCAA. Flagler has met all three proposed objectives: 1) to construct an intercollegiate softball field; 2) construct locker room facilities at Flagler Field; and, 3) increase parking, improve lighting and enhance landscaping.
Flagler made the transition for the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) to NCAA Division II after the 2005-06 season and became the 13th member of the Peach Belt Conference on July 1, 2009.
“For years we had been members of the NAIA and we made the decision, for a lot of reasons, to move our athletic affiliation from the NAIA to NCAA,” said Dr. Abare. “One of the reasons we made the jump was that we thought it would provide our student-athletes with a much better competitive environment in which to enjoy their time of competing in athletics in higher education.”
The improvements to the Flagler Field Complex started in 2004 with Dave Barnett, who served as the Director of Athletics at Flagler from 1994-2009. He oversaw the transition of the College’s athletics department from NAIA to NCAA Division II. Barnett still coaches baseball and will start his 24th season at the helm of the program.
Damon came to Flagler in the summer of 2009 as the school joined the Peach Belt Conference. In his short stint at Flagler, the volleyball team has claimed two conference titles (2009-10); the men’s soccer team won the regular season title in its inaugural season (2009) and the women’s golf team won the first conference tournament championship in 2010.
“We are getting a glimpse into the future of Flagler athletics with this facility,” said Damon. “The quality of this facility is symbolic of the quality that we are striving to attain with all of our programs. When you walk through these locker rooms, I think you are going to wish that you could be a member of one of these teams. This facility is also a tribute to our current student-athletes, our coaches and those past student-athletes and coaches who had practiced and competed out here for decades without a place to shower, without a place to change and without a complaint.”
The companies behind the project were: DiMare Construction Company of St. Augustine (general contractors); Kenneth Smith Architects of Jacksonville (architectural designs); Powell & Hinkle Engineering, P.A., of Orange Park (mechanical and electrical engineers); Atlantic Engineering Services of Jacksonville (structural engineers); Hauber Fowler & Associates, LLC., of Longwood (landscape architecture); and Means Engineering, Inc., of Orange Park (civil engineers).
Groundbreaking ceremony (July 2)
Progress photos (July 14)
Progress photos (July 22)
Progress photos (Aug. 3)
Progress photos (Aug. 16)
Progress photos (Aug. 25)
Progress photos (Sept. 1)
Progress photos (Sept. 7)
Progress photos (Sept. 15)
Progress photos (Sept. 23)
Progress photos (Sept. 30)
Progress photos (Oct. 13)
Progress photos (Oct. 22)
Progress photos (Oct. 28)
Progress photos (Nov. 11)
Progress photos (Nov. 22)
Progress photos (Dec. 3)
Progress photos (Dec. 13)
Progress photos (Jan. 4)
Completed locker room photos:
Baseball
Men's Soccer
Softball
Women's Soccer
