Play On!

KIDSPORTS is now operating summer multisport camps for first to eighth-graders in its new home at Civic Park. The opening of the new facilities is a testament to the vision and dogged perseverance of the members of the non-profit Eugene Civic Alliance (ECA). Their determination in the face of a devastating setback and daunting fundraising goals has rewarded all of Eugene with a new sports and recreation destination, home to the area’s most comprehensive youth sports programs. 

Civic Park’s all-weather synthetic turf field and the new KIDSPORTS fieldhouse comprise the majority of the project’s Phase One scope of work. The balance of the initial construction phase consists of a Ticket Office, enhanced pedestrian crossings at Willamette Street and Amazon Parkway, a 100-meter outdoor running track, and completion of site signage, interior “hero” graphics, and donor recognition. The City of Eugene granted Civic Park with a temporary Certificate of Occupancy for Phase One, which permits KIDSPORTS to offer its summer camps.  

Aerial view looking toward the northeast (photo courtesy Chambers Construction)

Despite the availability of the new all-weather synthetic turf field and the new fieldhouse, KIDSPORTS will maintain its use of public facilities (local schools), so the organization’s core program will continue to provide children with an opportunity to play at their neighborhood school, with their classmates and neighborhood friends. What the new facilities do is provide spaces for tournaments, the opportunity to revitalize and expand community leagues, enhance children’s education through activity, sport, and social development academies, and also provide schools that cannot adequately serve their populations with additional practice and play opportunities. 

(photo courtesy Chambers Construction)

While KIDSPORTS’ focus is primarily on providing age-appropriate physical activity and physical literacy programs for local youngsters, Civic Park will also host adult recreation leagues offering basketball, pickle ball, volleyball, soccer, ultimate frisbee, and indoor/outdoor futsal. Additionally, Civic Park will be the new home field for Lane United FC soccer club, which unfortunately has cancelled its 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Phase Two of the Civic Park project (stadium grandstand, concourse, locker rooms, and storage) is fully designed and permitted, but awaits additional funds before it can proceed. The Eugene Civic Alliance’s capital campaign remains an ongoing effort, one it hopes will result in Phase Two being realized very soon.

Detail view of projecting Conference Room (photo by Stephen Miller)

The project has exceeded my expectations. Though formally simple in conception, our partners at Skylab Architecture made just enough moves to endow the design with ample visual interest. Skylab’s trademark precise geometries are in play, albeit appropriately restrained by a tight budget, site constraints, and straightforward functional brief. I particularly appreciate the deep and rhythmic shadowing of the metal siding and its crisp detailing. The prominence of the strategically placed “KIDSPORTS” letters on the north façade is a revelation, as the sign is visible from many blocks away to motorists traveling south along Pearl Street before it becomes Amazon Parkway.

Inside the fieldhouse, the main lobby, gymnasium, and KIDSPORTS offices are suffused with natural light. Green accents are everywhere—tinted glass units, brightly painted stairs, the borders of the basketball courts—greatly contributing to the design’s cheery ambience. 

Gymnasium (photo by Stephen Miller)

It was my intention to wait until Civic Park’s Grand Opening event (originally scheduled to take place in June) before writing again about the project, but the coronavirus outbreak and “Stay Safe, Stay Home” order upset those plans. The Grand Opening isn’t likely to occur anytime soon. As the Civic Alliance recently stated on itswebsite, this is a difficult time for everyone. ECA knows Civic Park will play an important role in our community’s recovery, and the resumption of summer camps offered by KIDSPORTS is a first step. The times are uncertain but when life does fully return to normal, Civic Park will fulfill its promise as a community hub that helps bring Eugene together again.

(photo by Stephen Miller)

KIDSPORTS Executive Director Bev Smith has been effusive in her praise for and appreciation of the new facility. I know I speak on behalf of the entire design and construction team when I can say how gratifying it is to know our client is happy with the outcome of a lengthy and at times trying process. Once again, I’ve been blessed with the privilege to have worked on a significant community asset, an experience I’ll look back upon with pride for the rest of my life.