Pomona College on Dec. 19 unveiled plans for a new $55 million athletic facility and announced it had secured two $10 million donations toward the project.
The Claremont-based liberal arts college said in the announcement that the new athletic and recreation center will total 94,000 square feet, which is about 15,000 square feet larger than the current Rains Center facility it will replace. Chicago-based architectural firm Solomon Cordwell Buenz & Associates Inc. has been retained to do the design work. Construction is set to begin in 2020.
The Rains Center, built in 1989, hosts 21 varsity sports teams from Pomona College and Pitzer College, both part of the five Claremont Colleges. The building also serves more than 1,800 intramural athletes, 550 club athletes and student physical education classes
“We’ve outgrown the building,” Athletic Director Lesley Irvine said in a statement.
The two $10 million donations are part of a $29 million fundraise for the project, according to the school. Pomona College spokesman Mark Kendall said one of the $10 million donations came from alumnus Ranney Draper, a former shopping center developer who is now a trustee of the college; the other donor is anonymous. The school plans to raise at least $29 million in donations and will pay for the rest of the costs with money from its building construction and renovation project fund, Kendall said.
