Colorado Academy Athletic Center
Colorado Academy Athletic Center
Colorado Academy Athletic Center
Colorado Academy Athletic Center
Colorado Academy Athletic Center
Colorado Academy Athletic Center
Colorado Academy Athletic Center
Colorado Academy Athletic Center
Colorado Academy Athletic Center

The Colorado Academy (CA) Athletic Center renovation was one of several projects on the CA campus included in the school’s “See it Through” capital campaign. Not just a building for sports, CA’s Athletic Center weaves all aspects of the school’s mission into its programming.

The Athletic Center expresses its athletic nature through its tectonics. Structural steel is expressed openly, roofs cantilever to create the impression of lifting and soaring, and the climbing center at the terminus of Main Street is articulated as an abstraction of the caverns of Southwest Colorado. This honesty in expression of structure and material is carried into the building’s interior, to further reinforce an environment of openness and self-confidence.

New entrances to the Athletic Center are marked by significantly increased transparency and vibrant displays of natural materials inside. Careful and intentional re-use of salvaged materials throughout the project welcome visitors. At the public entrance, cubes of salvaged wood flooring are crafted into the confluence of Main Street, the gymnasium, the fitness center, and the climbing center. At a second entrance further east, students are greeted by the old gym floor medallion that is placed on axis with the Campus Center. Inside, along Main Street, study nooks, benches, memorabilia, and photographic legacies – past and present – encourage everyone to enjoy the Athletic Center, to learn, and to thrive together as a community. The new Colorado Academy Athletic Center honors CA’s past while supporting and encouraging a healthy and vibrant future for its community.

Colorado Academy Athletic Center
Our solution creatively solved the problem of keeping the existing athletic center in operation, while building a new/revitalized center over several phases of construction.
CA Athletic Center
Colorado Academy Athletic Center
Colorado Academy Athletic Center
The renovation removed an elevated track and extended the gym to the east, bringing it into compliance with competition regulations.
Colorado Academy Athletic Center
The Multi-Purpose Fieldhouse is home to the schools K-5 gym programs, team practices, annual fundraisers, concerts, and more.
Colorado Academy Athletic Center
Main Street connects the heart of the Athletic Center to surrounding programs and communities.
Colorado academy athletic center
Colorado Academy Athletic Center
Existing gym to the left, climbing center to the right. The old gym floor was rescued and now greets visitors as they walk into the new athletic center.
Colorado Academy Athletic Center
Main Street looking West, leading to the climbing gym.
Colorado Academy Athletic Center
Students mingle with the reclaimed gym floor medallion and other memorabilia honoring the past that created the foundation for this renovated present.
Colorado Academy Athletic Center
Main entrance as seen from the campus quad with views into the fitness center on the left and climbing wall on the right.
Colorado Academy Athletic Center
The center court medallion from the old gym is a beacon to students as they walk from the student center across campus to the athletic center.

SAR+'s design approach has always remained focused on serving our multitude of users-students of all ages, parents, teachers, and administration - and I have so enjoyed seeing how their design details manage to engage each age and size category at every turn.

Mike Davis
Head of School, Colorado Academy