The Black Hawks of Williams Field High School (WFHS) will be flying high this season thanks to a new 14,524-square-foot field house. The facility was completed by Adolfson & Peterson Construction (AP), a prominent national construction management firm and general contractor for the Higley Unified School District. The company employed its “hurry-up” offense to finish the project.
“Despite weather and pandemic related labor and materials delays, AP Southwest was able to deliver the replacement facility before the start of WFHS’s football season,” Justin Luera, the firm's spokesperson, says. AP has maintained an office in Phoenix for 30 years and has a long history of providing construction management services for K-12 education clients in the region.
Designed by Orcutt | Winslow, the WFHS project included the demolition of an existing concession stand, new landscaping, and the construction of a field house. The new facility features offices, office storage, and a conference room for WFHS athletics coaches and administration; field storage, showers, restrooms, locker rooms, a training room, a laundry room, and a team room for student-athletes; and a new concession stand for spectators.
“AP Southwest is pleased to deliver a new field house fit for state champions. Williams Field High School’s athletes and staff now have what they need for another winning season,” Scott Salyer, vice president of operations for AP Southwest, says. “As K-12 districts across Arizona look to resume capital improvement projects like this one, AP is well poised to deliver on those plans in a safe, timely manner.”
The Higley Unified School District awarded the field house replacement project to AP in July 2020, which began construction two months later in September.
“This project is very important for our school and specifically our outdoor sports teams,” Darrell Stangle, athletic director for WFHS, says. “The new field house will provide students and coaches with modern locker rooms and meeting rooms, as well as easier access to restrooms and the training room. This is just another example of our school board and District office's commitment to providing students with first-class facilities that enable them to grow into a better version of themselves every day.”
The Higley Unified School District financed the field house replacement with funds from its $70 million bond program approved by voters in 2013. WFHS, which has state championship titles in football, marching band, and wrestling, has also been honored academically. U.S. News and World Report included it four times on its "Best American Schools" list, and The Washington Post listed it as among its “America’s Most Challenging Schools” in 2015.
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This article originally appeared in the bimonthly Arizona Contractor & Community magazine, Jan/Feb 2022 issue, Vol. 11, No. 1.