Cardinal Gibbons High School has undergone many upgrades in the past decade, including a building expansion and renovation of the football stadium to lay an artificial turf surface.
Adjacent to the football stadium, six tennis courts and a grass practice field used for various athletic programs had remained unchanged, despite the courts being situated at a suboptimal orientation and the entire area suffering from subsurface drainage problems.
The school sought to reconfigure the tennis courts and practice field to provide an improved facility for its athletes. WithersRavenel provided the following for six new tennis courts, an upgraded practice field, parking lot expansion, and surrounding pedestrian access and pathways:
- Surveying
- Civil engineering
- Landscape architecture
- Permitting
WithersRavenel relocated the courts to provide the optimum orientation and improve the drainage issues. The practice field size was increased and specified with an artificial surface. The parking lot expansion added 34 parking spaces that were greatly needed during school hours for staff and are also beneficial for ADA users, media representatives, and recreation officials during sporting events.
Below the practice field, WithersRavenel employed an innovative stormwater system that filters and stores rainwater, making the field a Best Management Practice (BMP).
Project challenges and lessons learned
This project was a good example of lessons learned in collaboration and open communication during construction. Because of the innovative stormwater technologies used on site, close communication with the contractor was necessary from the onset of the project. Some of the retaining walls posed challenges for the contractor, and our team’s involvement and collaborative approach with the contractor helped to correct this before it could become an issue.
