Master Plan Update: Ianniello Field House

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The entrance to the $2 million Ianniello Field House. Photo by James Miranda/The Pace Chronicle.

JAMES MIRANDA, Sports Editor

Pace University’s Ianniello Field House is set for completion on Friday, Feb. 5, according to Mike Winn, Associate Athletic Director for Facilities and Operations.

“We have a certificate of occupancy for Ianniello Field House,” Winn said. “We are currently finalizing furnishing, equipment, and IT throughout the building. We expect the building to be done and then it’ll take about two, three months before all the finishing touches are put on it, such as projectors and TV screens.”

The field house’s usage will serve as a separation from the Goldstein Fitness center.

The Ianniello Field house has an equipment room, a conditioning and medicine room, a VIP room, and a strength room. The second floor strength room is already in use.

However, regular students do not have access to the workout facilities and student-athletes can only be in there under a coach’s supervision, according to Winn.

“In [Ianniello] a lot of things are tailored specifically to what we need as far as when we’re lifting,” said Matt Ruquet, midfielder for men’s lacrosse who’s gotten the chance to workout in the new facilities. “It has a special floor so when the rubber weights hit it nothing breaks. We have all this room now.”

The VIP room will be used for events and functions for alumni and the Board of Trustees during games. It will also serve as a classroom for Health and Wellness classes, according to Winn.

The field house is also home to three teams—football, women’s soccer, and women’s lacrosse.

“The determinant for which teams would have lockers [in the new field house] depended on space and roster size,” Winn said. “All of our athletic teams will have the opportunity to use [Ianniello Field House].”

Baseball and men’s lacrosse’s lockers will remain in the old field house and all other teams will remain in Goldstein.

The softball field, behind Dyson Hall, is finished, but will not be used until the 2017 season.

“The [softball] field is complete and we are awaiting a certificate of occupancy from the building inspector,” Winn said. “The grass will need a full growing season this spring before the field is playable.”

The period for the grass to grow is anywhere from four to six months. Pace’s softball team will play and practice for their 2016 season at the Briarcliff facilities. There are no namesake rights attached to the field as of now.

Both units are a part of the Master Plan—an estimated $100 million renovation. However, CBS Chief Operating Officer Joseph Ianniello donated $2 million and the building was named in his honor.

The exact cost of the field and field house has not yet been drawn out, but is expected to be determined sometime in March, according to Aisha Moyla, Director of Administration and Communications for the Master Plan.

“The way we’ve been trending now, [we’re] on budget and we don’t expect to exceed the budget at all,” Moyla said. “There were very little change orders to this project, which is very unique. We were able to keep the change orders minimal.”

The two units are the final piece for Pace athletic facilities being built on the campus, which in total, took up 14 percent of the overall Master Plan.

There will be an unveiling and ribbon ceremony for both the field house and softball field on April 30 and Ianniello will be present.