Marquette Announces Next Building Project

Marquette University is pursuing a plan to expand the Helfaer Tennis Stadium and Recreation Center, 525 N. 16th St., into a full-fledged wellness facility.

The expanded building would include the existing rec center as well as the university’s counseling center and medical clinic.

University President Michael R. Lovell announced the $80 million project during his annual campus address Thursday. Fundraising is already underway following an anonymous pledge to match up to $10 million to integrate the university’s health, wellness and recreation services.

The expanded facility will contain 180,000 square feet of space. It is to be funded by a combination of donations, external partnerships and university capital. An existing recreation and wellness fee will support the project’s development.

“This will be a transformational project for our campus, particularly our students. Not only is this facility a key part of our Campus Master Plan, but it is also truly about building a culture of wellness at Marquette,” said Lovell. “When complete, the facility will position recreation, fitness, clinical and mental health services under one roof.”

The original facility was constructed in 1974. Additional windows and a new HVAC system will be installed as part of the project.

A partnership of Workshop Architects and St. Louis-based HOK is designing the complex.

A three-story “wellness tower” is planned for the middle of the facility. It will include space for the medical clinic, counseling center, alcohol and drug recovery program and sexual violence prevention program. It will also include a “wellness suite” and flexible, multipurpose spaces. A rendering shows the “tower” rising atop the existing building.

The revamped two-story fitness facility is planned to include two multipurpose courts, four tennis courts, four basketball courts, a 25-yard swimming pool, two group fitness studios and one spin studio.

The existing facility fills much of a traditional Milwaukee city block. But the north side of the facility, where W. Michigan St. should be, is a sidewalk and parking lot connecting to the Engineering Hall. The other sides are bounded by W. Clybourn St., N. 16th St. and N. 17th.

No groundbreaking date has been set for the facility.

Construction is currently underway a block to the north on a new home for the College of Business Administration and the university’s innovation leadership programs. To the west of the rec center, a new building for the Physician Assistant Studies program was completed in 2019.

Renderings