Jones Architecture talks with Shield Lockers about the impact of COVID-19 on sports architecture
What’s waiting for sports venues and athletic facilities on the other side of this pandemic? There’s a lot of speculation and ideas gaining momentum as to where design could or should go as we begin to emerge from this complex crisis.
Shield Lockers recently had a conversation on this topic with Jones Architecture, a Massachusetts-based design firm focused on planning and design solutions for higher education, with particular expertise in learning environments and libraries.
Part of their practice is focused on research into current trends and challenges, as they seek to apply this to new opportunities. Specific to athletics, a growing segment of the practice with current projects at UMass-Amherst, Northeastern University, and TD Garden, they have been looking at health and wellness in general, as well as specific challenges stemming from the current COVID-19 pandemic.
Here's their collective response on the impact of COVID-19 on sports architecture.
Health and wellness in athletic venues and facilities
Athletics by their nature are closely tied to health and wellness, whether it is competitive sport or recreational exercise and body care. Maintaining a healthy and active lifestyle is beneficial for long term health, prevention of disease, a positive sense of self and healthy mental state.
In the past, the approach to health and wellness in design has generally been about using products and materials that contribute to a cleanable, durable, and environmentally friendly atmosphere. Use of natural light and well-ventilated spaces helps athletic spaces to be uplifting and healthy.
The interesting challenge that this pandemic has posed, is that the group-based atmosphere and camaraderie that makes recreation and sport such a positive social experience has become a detriment to public health. Weekly pickup basketball at a local gym is now a potential health hazard; this is a totally new societal perspective. The things that made us healthy individuals and social beings are now a danger to ourselves and people around us.
Until we conquer this pandemic, we have to leverage technology and media in the best way possible. Virtual training sessions for athletics and recreation, and video-based workouts will have to suffice in the short term.
The impact of COVID-19 on sports facilities design
The Covid-19 pandemic has changed how we will consider design in athletic facilities and for that matter all sectors we service as architects. Projects in the design phase are already going back to the drawing board to start to consider new ways of thinking about physical separation, cleanliness, occupant density, indoor air quality, and ventilation. It will likely be some time before there is definitive information about best practices for all of the above in grappling with this virus and future pandemics.
We see this pandemic creating some significant changes to building codes similar to changes brought on by the 9/11 attacks and recent Superstorms. It is very difficult to tell what the changes will be, as the medical community is still researching the best ways to combat the spread of this virus. However, we expect the magnitude of the changes to be consistent with those historical events that make the design community completely recalibrate the choices and standards that we use today.
Design trends to come
In athletics, one of the areas we think will be drastically different will be attendance at arenas for professional and collegiate events. There is no question that occupancy and attendance will be impacted in the coming years and the experience of going to an event will feel a lot different.
In outdoor stadiums we feel like we will see a lot more spaces that are open air without fixed seats with limited occupancies. We may see more sloped lawn areas, pavilions, and table seating integrated into future designs to allow for seating to be spaced further apart or groups of people to separate more naturally. Dense fixed seating will have to be adjusted in the short term at least by limited ticket sales and attendant numbers.
Another impact will likely be in food service, where face-to-face interactions with vendors will be replaced by more of a grab-and-go based system. We are already seeing this in many stadiums as food and beverage services are being delivered with mobile device apps, reducing long lines and crowds.
Learn more about Jones Architecture’s higher education design expertise.
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