User:Uwrf2019/sandbox

The Falcon Center is the fitness facility located at the University_of_Wisconsin–River_Falls, in River_Falls,_Wisconsin that will open in the fall of 2017.

Background
The Falcon Center is an addition to the Hunt/Knowles sports complex. Part of the plan for the Falcon Center includes remodeling approximately 14,670 square-feet of the Hunt/Knowles complex. Upon the completion of the Falcon Center, the existing Karges Physical Education Center and the Emogene Nelson Building will be demolished. The Karges Physical Education Center and the Emogene Nelson Building are the current athletic centers that includes a track, rock climbing wall, the Hunt Arena or ice skating rink, and an open rec facility.

The University of Wisconsin-River Falls' Chancellor Van Galen chose to name the facility the Falcon Center in order to be inclusive of all the primary users of the building as well as the various activities that will be held within the complex.

About the Falcon Center
The Health and Human Performance program at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls is the only National Association of Sport and Physical Education accredited K-12 teacher certification program in the State of Wisconsin, and one of the few in the entire Midwest. The UW-River Falls' physical education space started in a small gym in South Hall; today there are approximately 6,000 students.

The $61 million Falcon Center will be where the Health and Human Performance Department will be located. The 162,300 square-foot facility will incorporate classrooms, an exercise science lab, a fitness center, an outdoor adventure rental center and bouldering wall, training rooms, locker rooms, and an auxiliary gym.

While the Falcon Center will not have a vegetated roof or be a rainwater recycling system like the campus' University Center, it is anticipated that the building will receive a LEED-Silver rating from the US Green Building Council. The roof of the building is designed to accommodate solar panels some time in the future when the cost becomes more affordable. The Falcon Center is also being designed for the use of ground-mounted solar options for installation in the future.

The facility is being funded by the State of Wisconsin. The state is paying for the majority of the project, which is approximately $50 million dollars. The remaining balance will be payed for through student fees, parking fees, and a total of about $2,056,000 was accumulated through gifts from the UW-River Falls Foundation.