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Klein Family Natatorium and new Performance Gym
Bringing Forward the Next Phase of our Master Facilities Plan
IN FEBRUARY, Head of School Mark Reed announced that four generous donors, who have already made commitments to the current capital projects, have made additional significant pledges to support the next phase of Country Day’s master facilities plan. This generous investment and demonstration of support in the school’s mission and leadership allows the school to break ground this spring on the Klein Family Natatorium and a new Performance Gymnasium. The school is incredibly grateful for the $10 million lead gift from the Klein family, support from the Dowd Foundation, and two additional anonymous donors totaling $30.5 million that allow us to fund and begin construction on these two new athletics facilities. These new facilities will not only serve students in meaningful ways but also cement Country Day’s position as a national leader in education.
–Fred Klein Jr.
The new facility will add about 30,000 square feet for the Klein Family Natatorium and 47,000 square feet for the Performance Gymnasium and supporting spaces. The two new athletics facilities are being intentionally designed to tie in with the Bruton Smith Athletic Center to promote open movement and flexible space use.
The Klein Family Natatorium will house an eight-lane, 25-yard competition pool, and a five-lane, 25-yard warm-up/activity pool. The warm-up/activity pool will allow for aquatics programming at all age levels; and the layout of the competition pool, along with generous seating capacity, will allow for the hosting of large community events. Both pools will provide ample practice space for our Middle School and Varsity swim teams.
The state-of-the-art performance gym levels; and the layout of the competition will serve as our new primary competition space for volleyball, basketball, and wrestling, with seating for over 1,200 spectators to cheer on our Bucs. The main court will provide additional practice space for basketball and volleyball, and the facility will also feature our strength and conditioning program, a new wrestling/ multipurpose room, new
–Frank Dowd IV ’74
The state-of-the-art performance gym will serve as our new primary competition space for volleyball, basketball, and wrestling, with seating for over 1,200 spectators to cheer on our Bucs. The main court will provide additional practice space for basketball and volleyball, and the facility will also feature our strength and conditioning program, a new wrestling/multipurpose room, new administrative office suite, modern concessions, additional gym storage, and abundant corridor/reception space.
“The new Performance Gym will provide a space that is specifically designed for hosting large events and will be tailored to a heightened competition experience for student-athletes and viewing experience for spectators,” said Abe Wehmiller, director of Athletics. “The surrounding weight room and wrestling/multipurpose rooms will allow for training opportunities for all our sports that are currently limited by our footprint.”
Our comprehensive Athletics Complex, including the Bruton Smith Athletics Center, can now be utilized to the fullest potential of its original design. Over time, we’ll be able to reconfigure spaces like the current wrestling room, weight room, and administrative offices and repurpose them for additional visitors’ locker room space, a health and wellness area, and increased workspace for physical education teachers and coaches.
