words and photos by: Scot Zimmerman
I associate the term fieldhouse with Utah. While there are probably fieldhouses elsewhere, it’s common here to see them titled as such at college campuses and elsewhere. Plus, it is a term my grandfather used. It’s a great term for a place to play sports indoors when the weather turns. When bad weather is mentioned, I usually think of cold, but this summer it has even been in the 90s even in Park City, where the Snyderville Basin Special Recreation District Fieldhouse is located at the northeast corner of the Newpark Town Center with the a bike path running along the eastern boundary that separates it from the Swaner Nature Preserve.
I had an assignment to photograph an addition to the 55,000-square-foot fieldhouse. It was designed by Elliott Workgroup in Park City (Carla Lehigh and Logan Swney, architects) and built by Okland. The project is an addition, just under 30,0000 square feet, and it includes a multi-purpose gymnasium with a drop-down partition and flexible courts for volleyball, basketball, and pickleball. In the outdoor space between the addition and the existing building is a new lap swimming pool and hot tub. The aerial photos provide a good view to understand the layout and how the pieces interface and show the solar collectors, as well.
I learned from the project architects that bright light creates glare that interferes with the players. [Ah, so that’s why gymnasiums are so gloomy!] But not this one. The white ceiling and walls reflect natural light that enters from a course of windows floor level on the south side. Another light source is from the west. The top floor a fitness area has glass to the outdoors and glass separates the fitness center from the gymnasium. The western light is filtered and soft, and the people were obviously enjoying working out with views outside and to the gym, and being perched on the second floor gave them a bit of extra privacy. There is one window to the east that catches direct morning sun, but ever so briefly and before the court has much use.
I visited the Fieldhouse at various times. The shots that were the most fun were evening shots of the ground level windows, where I could see inside to only the feet of the players. It was very entertaining to watch the feet disconnected from the play.
For all the people in the Snyderville Basin Special Recreation District, the fieldhouse and pool are great places to spend a summer day. Lucky you.
