Land Spreading Out So Far and Wide

Located halfway between Rt. 6 and River Road, the long anticipated, much needed western campus comprises155 acres, 55 of which have been cleared to create12 fields, each 75 by 120 yards, for Collegiate’s bursting-at-the-seams athletic program.

Sure, the present lack of irrigation coupled with the summer drought hasn’t done the first stand grass any favors. There’re still rocks to be picked up and carted off, and the stretches of land around the perimeter could still use some smoothing.

Nevertheless, it’s ours. The future has finally arrived.

"What we really have," says Head of School Keith Evans, "is a blank canvas." In more ways than one.

In the fall, the canvas will accommodate Cub and junior varsity football, field hockey, and soccer teams which will be bused the four miles from Jacobs Gym through a contract with Virginia Overland. When one of these younger teams plays a game on the North Mooreland Road campus, the varsity will travel west.

There’s also a 5-kilometer cross country course including two trails through the woods which were cleared from scratch in June. Each trail includes a definite incline, and the variety in elevation among the dozen fields will definitely make the course challenging.

Present plans call for three buildings, two for maintenance plus a pavilion to include restrooms, storage space, a training room, and a shelter. A certified athletic trainer will be on duty each day.

"There’s something about the sheer magnitude of the place that’s pretty special," says co-athletic director Karen Doxey. "You walk out there and can’t believe we actually have a place to call our own. It’s like a huge city park."

Because of the cramped, landlocked 55-acre North Mooreland campus, locating land off-campus has for years been a passion of Alex Smith, vice president for development. As a stop-gap measure, Jerry Gumenick and E. Carlton Wilton , long-time benefactors, friends of the school, and parents of graduates, graciously allowed our teams to use property along the River Road corridor. From time to time, the school also rented several field space from Benedictine Abbey. Otherwise, the athletic program would have been in deep, deep trouble.

"We needed space for our kids to play and learn," explained Smith, "and we needed additional fields so the ones on our main campus could breathe and recover. "Now, we’re breathing a sigh of relief to have more stretching room."

In early 1997, the Goochland tract became available. After complex negotiations and several fits and starts, the $2.2-million deal was closed in June of 1999 thanks to financing arranged through the Industrial Development Authority of Goochland County and SunTrust Bank. "This land wasn’t perfect," added Smith. "There’re elevation changes. There were no utilities or water. And it wasn’t easy to buy, but when we finally did…Hallelujah!"

Years ago, Charlie McFall, Collegiate’s other co-athletic director, hunted the property he will now supervise, so he knows well the terrain, the logging trails, the deer tracks, and the feel of the land. "The transformation of the woods to fields has been amazing," he says. "When you measure what our kids get out of our program, it’ll just add to the experience in ways we can’t even imagine now."

With 100 untapped acres in Goochland, the inevitable question has arisen: Will the school move west, lock, stock, and barrel? The answer, for this generation anyway, is no. After all, Collegiate has just completed a bold capital initiative: a massive renovation of the Lower School, construction of two state-of-the-art science facilities, and a facelift of the Seal Athletic Center.

Down the road, however, who knows? "Our acquisition of the land in Goochland unlocks the future," said Smith. "It lets us dream. It gives some possibilities that wouldn’t be there otherwise to a generation of Cougars that’ll come long after we’re gone."
--Weldon Bradshaw (wbradsha@collegiate-va.org)