Smaller upgrades take place amidst major campus rebuilding

• Prayer Chapel renovationsFor alumni and others familiar with past campus landmarks, Liberty’s Prayer Chapel is among the most iconic. Recently, the prayer chapel underwent a major interior renovation, maintaining the quaint beauty of a traditional wedding chapel.

• Vines Center interior reconstructionSeveral renovations are taking place inside Liberty’s basketball arena, the Vines Center. All of the seats have been removed in order to repave steps and walkways. Handrails and floor lighting are being added to the walkways to improve safety. New seats will replace the old ones and aisles are being reconfigured to add 1,400 additional seats, which will help accommodate the growing student body. A new LED lighting system is being installed to reduce energy cost and consumption. The building’s acoustics underneath its dome are also being redone to improve sound quality. The arena hosts a plethora of concerts, seminars, and events throughout the year, including Convocation and some Campus Church services. In addition, a new sound and light grid is being installed that will save time and cost in supporting these events.

• New dome at Astronomical ObservatoryAt the end of July, Liberty will receive a custom-built 24-inch telescope, the capstone to its astronomical observatory which opened last fall atop Liberty Mountain near the university’s Equestrian Center. The scope, which will be the largest in the region, will be housed in a dome being constructed alongside the main building.

With thriving NCAA Athletics and Club Sports programs, as well as a rich Campus Recreation experience, Liberty dedicates resources to ensuring that these facilities are more than accommodating. (Read more about upgrades to Club Sports facilities.)

• New Golf ClubhouseThe Flames Golf Team is one of the most successful NCAA Division I programs at Liberty. A new clubhouse is set to open in August, with interior work currently in progress. The 4,557-square-foot building features men’s and women’s locker rooms, coaches offices, a conference room, and seating areas with another 743 square feet of covered porches. A 1,210-square-foot stand-alone hitting bay was constructed nearby.

• New barn at Equestrian CenterA new 18-stall barn is being added to Liberty’s Equestrian Center. This structure will include a new tack room, feed room, grooming and wash stalls, as well as an office for coaches and a classroom/team room for organized meetings. Liberty added equestrian to its Club Sports program last year and the team has already experienced some success. The center’s original eight-stall barn will be used exclusively for the team while the new barn will be for students to board their horses. A new riding area has also been added, in addition to the riding ring already in place.

• Gymnastics training facilityLiberty will soon begin renovating its gymnastics facility at the university-owned Plaza Shopping Center with new equipment to better serve the men’s and women’s Club Sports teams. The facility will also be open to the student body. The new equipment will be installed throughout the end of the month and into August. Everything is planned to be complete by Sept. 1.

• New ramp at SnowflexA new ramp has recently been completed at Liberty Mountain Snowflex Centre for skiiers and snowboarders to utilize the airbag that the facility added this summer.