Caption: Artist’s rendering of the 128,000-square-foot facility.

The $37.5-million, 128,000-square-foot center will include an exercise and weight facility; six basketball courts; multi-activity court for indoor soccer and floor hockey; racquetball courts; aerobic studios; jogging track; fitness lab; classrooms and a gaming area. It also will feature a lighted, artificial-turf field for recreational use and physical education classes.

A fee endorsed by almost 90 percent of the student senate and private funding will pay for the center. The first UofL building to be heated and cooled with geothermal energy, it is expected to earn gold certification through the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program.

“Our recreational facilities have lagged behind many other Kentucky universities’,” said President James Ramsey. “Along with the new housing and retail developments in that area, the SRC will further energize our thriving campus environment, and it will help us recruit even more top students to UofL.”

The blue parking lot between Kurz and Minardi Halls will be closed April 18 for the groundbreaking.

The blue lot and some yellow parking spaces will be closed permanently once construction begins after the end of the spring semester. Arrangements are being made to move the spaces.

UofL Today will announce the closure at least one week in advance.

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John Drees is a 35-year veteran in the Office of Communications and Marketing. As vice president, communications and marketing, he works closely with the president, provost and other senior administrators, oversees the Office of Communications and Marketing, including media relations, marketing and brand, broadcast, social media, internal communication, crisis communication, visitor services and special events and activities. A former sports editor for the Voice Newspapers, he was a regular contributor to a variety of publications, including the Kentucky Sports Report and the Courier-Journal. A poor but enthusiastic golfer, he is an avid Cardinal sports fan. He also loves the Detroit Lions, so pity him.