Students are arriving at Harding University, and as the student body prepares for a new semester of classes, the Searcy campus itself is undergoing some transformations.
Several construction projects are either in the works or expected to start later this year. The third phase of Legacy Park — an on-campus apartment complex built in an urban-town concept was recently completed.
Harding President Bruce McLarty said the new buildings are ready for people to move in and will provide 132 new beds in eight buildings. The cost of the project came to about $6.5 million.
“Legacy Park continues to be a very happy part of the Harding story of development these days,” he said.
There is a fundraising push right now at the university for three more construction projects this year. McLarty said there are plans to renovate or add onto both the Rhodes Field House and the Ganus Athletic Center. Additionally, the First Ladies Garden is being built and is expected to be finished before homecoming celebrations in October.
“As you go through Legacy Park, there is a tower with a light on it that is an icon of Legacy Park. The First Ladies Garden starts at the tower,” McLarty said. “Eventually, it will tie into the center quad of campus. It takes Legacy Park and snaps the pieces together so there is a major, beautiful pedestrian connection there.”
In Harding’s 91-year history, the school has had five presidents. Each of the five first ladies will have a dedicated portion of the garden. The garden is already under construction and, along with Legacy Park, will be dedicated at homecoming. Three of the first ladies are expected to be present at the dedication.
Other renovation plans include a face-lift for Bison athletic facilities. One of the projects involves the Rhodes Field House, and McLarty said the administration has taken at least one major student suggestion to heart.
“Whenever you even mention Rhodes Field House, the first thing you hear is, ‘Don’t touch the court,’” McLarty said. “The shell of that is so loved on campus. We’re not going to touch the inside of the Rhodes Field House.”
There will be two projects on the outside of the field house, though. The school will add a two-story atrium lobby at the front of the building.
“There’s not really a lobby on the building,” McLarty said. “To put that many people in there, there’s just not much space. That two-story atrium will also give us a hospitality room that will look over the court. … We’ll start that piece of the project when basketball is over next spring.”
The second part of the renovations to Rhodes Field House will be the construction of a practice gym on the back of the building. McLarty said there are just too many sports and athletes for the one gym to handle, so a practice gym will allow more athletes the ability to practice at the same time.
“Right now, we have men’s and women’s basketball, [as well as] volleyball, that have essentially the same seasons, the same practice needs and space,” he said. “Someone is practicing right now from about 5 in the morning to about 8 at night.”
McLarty said construction on the practice gym will start after homecoming this fall.
The Rhodes Field House renovations will cost about $2 million total, and Roy Reeves, chairman of Harding’s board of trustees, and his wife have already made a $1 million gift to the project. The building will be named the Rhodes-Reeves Memorial Field House.
The Ganus Athletic Center — which includes classrooms, racquetball courts, a swimming pool and other facilities — will also gain some updates this year.
“The Ganus Athletic Center was finished when I was a student here in the ’70s,” McLarty said. “This will be a $4 million project that will put a walking/running track on the second floor inside of the gymnasium area. What you can see [on the plans is that] out to the north of the building are two stories of training equipment, weights, elliptical trainers, treadmills — things like that.
“We’re hoping to make this an evening recreational community space. That’s something we recognize we are underbuilt for here.”
The plan is to start construction on the Ganus Athletic Center in December after intramural sports are finished, with a completion date of August 2016.
The three major projects — the First Ladies Garden, the Rhodes Field House and the Ganus Athletic Center — total about $6.7 million in renovations. So far, $6.1 million has been raised.
“My agreement with the board of trustees when they approved these projects last homecoming was that we would begin the fundraising part, and that by this year’s homecoming, I planned to be able to say to them, ‘We have raised 100 percent of the money needed,’ and they’ll give me the green light to start turning more dirt over,” McLarty said. “[The projects] were approved conditionally, so when the money is completely raised, we’ll get going with that.”
Staff writer Angela Spencer can be reached at (501) 244-4307 or aspencer@arkansasonline.com.