Academic/University Center
at Florida State University

Doak Campbell Stadium at Florida State University is surrounded by the Academic/University Center.

Built completely around the existing Doak Campbell Stadium, the Academic Center/University Center project at Florida State University (FSU) creatively provided additional space for academic and administrative functions that had previously been distributed across the land-locked campus. This project, which has taken over 14 years to complete and cost more than $150 million, increased the seating capacity to approximately 85,000. In addition the project added six new buildings for administrative, classroom and support areas, including new athletic offices and the University Center Club located in the south end zone. Few college campuses have consolidated administrative and athletic functions on the same scale as this project.

The primary goals in the planning and design of the center were improving circulation, maximizing parking, and improving infrastructure while making the facade architecturally compatible with the original campus design. The expansion enclosed both the north and south end zones, provided skyboxes on three sides, and enhanced the existing athletic facilities, including the training table/locker/weight rooms.

PBS&J provided master planning, site engineering, site analysis, infrastructure planning and design, land-use and regulatory planning, permitting, and construction administration services for the over 600,000-square-foot project. PBS&J was instrumental in relocating a state road (Pensacola Street) around the center that had previously run through the campus, developing the concept of a regional stormwater facility, and enclosing an existing drainage ditch that traversed the site.