The University of Oregon is building a new indoor athletic facility along Leo Harris Parkway west of Autzen Stadium. The new facility, expected to open in 2025, will provide indoor training facilities that would benefit UO student athletes.

UO student athletes currently use the Moshofsky Center, commonly referred to as “the Mo.” The 117,000 square-foot facility includes a “full-length artificial football surface, a synthetic four-lane 120-meter running track and an attached Duck Shop souvenir retail outlet,” according to University of Oregon Athletics. 

In an email statement from Jimmy Stanton, senior associate athletics director,  he said that the “[Moshofsky Center] is our most utilized facility and has been recently renovated with a newly installed surface, video board and new graphics, and [it] will continue to be utilized by the high majority of UO Athletics programs. This will continue to be the case upon completion of the new football practice facility.” 

The new facility will replace the Mo in providing a facility to accommodate student athletes. According to UO’s 2023 Ten Year Capital Plan, the planned 140,000 square-foot indoor practice facility will include a 65,000 square-foot football locker room and associated support facilities will be relocated to the new facility. 

Stanton said the project is currently in the preliminary stage, and the first phase of the project is construction of a new parking lot across the Moshofsky Center parking lot. Construction on the facility is scheduled to run through mid-August.

However, many UO students feel that a new indoor facility for student athletes is unnecessary, as the Mo provides an existing space for student athletes to train in and utilize.

“I feel like they have enough practice facilities and they probably could put that money towards something that matters more, like people’s education,” Jack Fair, a junior majoring in finance, said.

Katie Fendick, a junior majoring in anthropology and Spanish, expressed a similar sentiment, saying that UO “puts a lot of emphasis on athletics, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but there are definitely other avenues you could spend that money on.”

Aharon Melloul, a sophomore majoring in vocal performance, said that he believes the university spends too much money on athletics and that it underfunds teachers and the GEs’ salaries. 

“I know that the GEs have complained in the past about not being paid enough, and I agree with them,” Molloul said.
The project is in the preliminary stage and is slated for completion by 2025. Students can find more information here.