Berry Sports Center: Construction underway

Ground-breaking ceremonies for the first phase of the long-awaited John W. Berry Sports Center were held on August 8. Planned for almost nine years, the renovation and expansion of the College's athletic facilities are beginning with the construction of a new gymnasium. The gym component, budgeted at $8.85 million out of a total project cost of $16.5 million, is being constructed on the site formerly occupied by Davis Rink. The new two-story facility will house a varsity basketball arena, practice courts, a fitness center, squash and handball courts, a dance studio, and multipurpose rooms.

Present for the groundbreaking were President McLaughlin, donor John W. Berry '44, architect Charles Gwathmey, Athletic Director Ted Leland, and William Craig, a classmate of Berry's and current co-chairman of the Athletic Council's national development committee. The timing for the ground-breaking had been in doubt until just weeks before the event. Only a little over a year ago less than $500,000 of the total $16.5 million had been raised. Then last June, Berry made a gift of $5 million for the athletic project that now bears his name. But by June of this year, though nearly $8 million in pledges had been achieved, potential cash flow difficulties made the Trustees reluctant to authorize ground-breaking. Berry once again stepped to the fore, providing the means to protect the College's operational budget during construction.

Still to be raised is approximately $4 million for renovations to Alumni Gym and Davis Varsity House and another $4 million for endowment. Two other major athletic projects are also currently in progress the construction of a new boat house on the Connecticut, covered on page 27, and a campaign to install artificial snowmaking at the Dartmouth Skiway, noted in the last issue.

The need for new athletic facilities at the College has been identified and studied since 1976. A commission headed by history professor Jere Daniell '55 concluded in April 1982 that Dartmouth needed a new athletic center, major renovations to Alumni Gym, improved facilities for rowing, and snowmaking equipment.

Amidst all the celebratory beginnings in Dartmouth athletics was one ending. Davis Rink met with the wrecking ball in early August to make way for the new gym. But much of the equipment from it was salvaged prior to demolition and is destined to eventually find a home in a community ice rink. Ever since the completion of Thompson Arena Dartmouth had rented ice time at Davis to a variety of local hockey and figure skating groups, and College officials have been working with these groups to help build and equip a new community facility.

One of the benefits of the construction of the Hood Museumof Art was the renovation of existing space in adjacent WilsonHall. When workers removed the six or seven layers of paintthat had accumulated over the years, they discovered the natural beauty of rich - and by today's standards, extraordinarily expensive - hardwoods beneath.