UVa-Wise Holds Groundbreaking for Convocation Center

WISE, Va. – Ground was broken Wednesday for a $30 million Convocation Center at the University of Virginia’s College at Wise.

The building will be the largest single capital project in the college’s history.

State lawmakers and regional leaders joined UVa-Wise officials for the afternoon ceremony. The center will be built next to the Humphreys-Thomas Field House at Carl Smith Stadium.

When completed in two years, the convocation center will seat 3,000 fans for sporting events and 4,000 for concerts or convocation activities, according to a written statement from UVa-Wise. The facility will give the region its first venue for seating large crowds.

“It’s on the fast track,” Chancellor David J. Prior said of the project, adding that just the prospect of the facility has given the region a “can do” attitude in planning for programs and activities. “We are looking forward to hosting all sorts of programs and events.”

The Virginia General Assembly approved funding for the center in April 2008, while authorizing nearly $1.5 billion in bond financing for building projects at state colleges and facilities. The Southwest Virginia legislative delegation stood behind the project and kept the UVa-Wise Convocation Center in the legislation, according to the statement from the college.

“This is going to be the centerpiece for the region,” said Delegate Terry Kilgore, R-Gate City. “The Convocation Center will bring a lot to the region that we don’t have right now.”

State Sen. Phillip Puckett, D-Lebanon, said UVa-Wise is working to boost the region’s economy, while state Sen. William Wampler, R-Bristol, said the center “is something that will live beyond any legacy we have created to date.”

Delegate Bud Phillips, D-Sandy Ridge, said the region was once considered a frontier, but Southwest Virginia is now “the new frontier in education, economic development and technology. This is a new frontier where nothing is out of reach for the folks in our region.”

Features of the new center include:

* an intercollegiate-sized basketball court;
* space for multiple intramural games, volleyball or scholastic wrestling matches;
* multiple locker rooms;
* offices;
* concessions and ticket stands;
* meeting space;
* and a study area.