Future Fab Facilities

Team Terry has spent a lot of time visiting facilities of every kind in Maryland over the past year. We've also dug high and low for those that would not otherwise register on our radar, because we want our data base to reflect all the wonderful sports and recreation opportunities available in our state.

It's a moving target. Just when we think we've seen it all, something else comes on line. Within the next few months, there will be two major sports complexes ready to serve a multitude of activities. They are both college facilities, but their use and influence go far beyond their Baltimore campuses.

The Physical Education Complex at Coppin State University is actually three building in one. Its size enlarged the urban campus by a third, taking it all the way to Gwynns Falls Parkway.

It consists of a 4,100 indoor arena, an NCAA regulation indoor pool (that's another for the natatorium list, Tweety) a 400 meter competition track, soccer and softball fields, classrooms and offices, racquetball courts, dance studio and fitness center.

It is an impressive layout, destined to serve not only the inner city college, but also the community that has long been a part of the educational mission. The students and faculty at Coppin have been waiting for three years for this massive project to be complete. In a few short weeks, it will be a reality. By spring, it will be in service.

Farther uptown, Loyola College (soon to be University) is awaiting its own dream complex with the completion of the Ridley Intercollegiate Athletic Complex. In fact, Ridley is already booked, scheduled to host the 2010 MAAC Men's and Women's Soccer Championships.

This facility, on a 71 acre parcel just off the main campus, will feature a 6,000 seat grandstand, a synthetic turf field for NCAA lacrosse and soccer, practice fields, locker rooms, press box, and staff offices.

It will also have an impressive Daktronics scoreboard system.

Having facilities like these makes Maryland a more attractive site for hosting tournaments and intercollegiate play. They also become part of a bigger picture, as practice sites for large scale tournament play (read: World Cup preliminary rounds)

So our work maintaining a current data base continues. There is always something happening, some new opportunity to offer. If you hear of one yourself, be sure to let us know.