Upgrades to Gonzaga’s baseball facilities, the Plante’s Ferry Park sports complex, and Eagles Ice Arena are among the planned or ongoing sports-related construction projects in the Inland Northwest.

The $10 million expansion of Gonzaga University’s Patterson Baseball Complex will include a new locker room, an indoor practice facility, and a recruiting gallery, says Rob Kavon, GU’s associate athletic director.

Kavon previously told the Journal of Business the project needed to be completed by mid-January, ahead of the 2024 season, but permitting issues have caused some delays, he says.

“We’re a couple months behind,” Kavon says. “We’re projected to finish in the middle of April.”

Spokane-based Garco Construction Inc., the Spokane office of DCI Engineers, and Spokane-based ALSC Architects PS are handling construction, engineering, and architecture services, respectively.

Once renovations are completed, the baseball complex, located at the northwest corner of Spokane Falls Boulevard and Cincinnati Street on the south end of GU’s campus, will have over 35,000 square feet of space, up from 19,700 square feet of space.

At 12320 E. Upriver Drive, Spokane County is seeking approval from the State of Washington Project Review Committee to move forward with the first phase of a proposed $40 million upgrade of the Plante’s Ferry Park sports complex, says Doug Chase, the county’s Parks, Recreation & Golf director.

The first phase of the proposed project, if approved, will include renovating three multiuse fields with synthetic turf, a new parking lot with about 180 parking spaces, a new entry drive with intersection improvements, and field lighting, the project application shows.

Initial cost estimates for the first phase of the project were between $6 million and $10 million, Chase says. The cost of the project and the plans will be subject to change when a design-build team is selected, but the County has about $5 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds to put toward that work, he says.

On Spokane's North Side, Eagles Ice Arena, located at 6321 N. Addison, is undergoing a $1 million facility upgrade project.

The two-phase project will replace and enhance the components of the facility’s refrigeration system, which has been in operation since the rink opened in 1973.

The first phase of the project, which involved the installation of a new cooling tower, was completed in late December. Kemper Northwest Inc., a Caldwell, Idaho-based industrial refrigeration contractor, handled the installation

The project’s second phase involves the building and installation of the refrigeration system, and is expected to occur next year.