Iowa State University Jack Trice Stadium Master Plan

With the goal of enhancing the performance and well-being of all student-athletes and elevating the fan experience on game days, Iowa State University understood the need for a comprehensive plan to guide the growth and development of its athletic facilities around Jack Trice Stadium. The challenge involved seamlessly fitting new facilities adjacent to existing buildings and introducing new spaces and functions while improving circulation and overall efficiency.

Substance Architecture was retained to develop a comprehensive plan that addressed six separate facilities as part of a larger sports performance campus. Study participants included ISU Facilities and the ISU Athletic Department staff. Each component of the Master Plan introduces programmatic functions that prioritize the sustenance of both mind and body for all of ISU’s more than 450 student-athletes.

This Master Plan required a prospective design—developed to compliment and support buildings that are to be constructed in the future—while appearing complete without them.

In 2018 Substance was hired to implement the recommendations outlined in the plan. The complex, multi-phase project took more than five years to complete and required extensive planning, phasing, and schedule logistics to allow the facilities to remain operational to serve both student-athletes and fans during construction. Ultimately, the scope of the total project expanded, with the Academic Success Center developing into the expanded Stark Performance Center and with the addition of the iconic East Gateway Pedestrian Bridge, which linked the stadium to parking and tailgating lots. All these projects were realized by the University in collaboration with Substance.