February 10, 2023 (Huntsville, AL) – The Highland Group, a leading real estate development and commercial construction firm, has completed major updates to The University of Alabama in Huntsville’s (UAH) premier collegiate gymnasium and auditorium, Spragins Hall. The architecture firm that Highland collaborated with on this project was Chapman Sisson Architects, a visionary design practice founded in 1997 based out of Huntsville. Renovations included improvements to the front lobby, court flooring, concessions, fitness facilities, weight rooms, locker rooms, ceilings, electrical systems, fire safety equipment, and some minor demolition services.
“At Highland, we know how critical college sports are at driving revenue to their respective schools and how important the performance of collegiate athletes can be to their school,” said Highland’s Vice President of North Alabama, Michael Barnes. “UAH has had a GSC Top Ten award winner in each of the past four academic years and nine in the last ten seasons. When learned that UAH needed renovations made to Spragins Hall my team jumped at the opportunity to offer our assistance with the project. They’re a college with a tradition of excellence, and I think that matches Highland’s commitments spectacularly,” added Barnes.
The Highland Group has completed several other extensive projects for universities throughout Alabama in recent years and UAH will most certainly not be the last to be included in this growing list of higher learning centers.
Spragins Hall at the University of Alabama in Huntsville is a spacious gymnasium and auditorium home to the UAH athletic department, and The Alabama-Huntsville Chargers (UAH Chargers) various sporting teams. Spragins Hall provides the campus and collegiate athletes with first-class training spaces, a spacious fitness facility, six locker rooms, a track & field practice area, a varsity & booster room, an academic center, a theatre-style film room, a large study space, fully stocked concession stand, and several staff offices on the second floor as well. Spragins currently seats approximately 2,500 with its pull-out stadium-style seating on either side of the basketball court and bleacher-style seating along both sides. The court also comes equipped with a large arena style video screen capable of displaying not only game statistics but also advertisements for the schools’ various sponsors, bringing in a considerable amount of revenue for the university during any event. Spragins Hall also serves as a community hub where the public can intermingle with the university’s collegiate athletes and administrative staff during its operations as a successful venue space.
The University of Alabama in Huntsville, founded in November of 1949, is a public national university located in Huntsville, Alabama offering 89 programs of study at the undergraduate and graduate levels. The college is one of the nation’s premier research universities, offering a challenging hands-on curriculum that seeks to ensure any UAH graduates are prepared to become tomorrow’s leaders. UAH houses several colleges of study for its students including Engineering, Education, Honors, Nursing, Science, Business, Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences, Graduate School, and Professional Studies. UAH boasts a robust academic presence complemented by a vibrant campus life featuring more than 155 student-run organizations, 11 fraternities and sororities, and 15 NCAA sports.
The university’s nearly 500-acre campus, which includes 17 high-tech research centers and labs responsible for nearly $149.8 million in annual research expenditures and serves as the anchor tenant for the second-largest research park in the nation. It also maintains strong partnerships with federal agencies and commercial organizations that include the Hudson Alpha Institute for Biotechnology, NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, the Missile Defense Agency, the DIA Missile and Space Intelligence Center, and the U.S. Army Materiel Command. The university comprises nine colleges that offer nearly 100 areas of study to more than 9,200 students. In short, UAH counts itself as not only an institution of higher learning but a partner to the city of Huntsville, its business, industry, and its citizens.
The Highland Group is a real estate development and commercial construction firm that specializes in real estate development, preconstruction services, general contracting, construction management, and design-build delivery. Their mission is to develop leaders committed to higher standards who have an impact on their firm and the communities in which they work and live by developing trusting relationships and building quality projects. The Highland Group has offices located in the Gulf Coast Region (501 South McKenzie Street, Suite 2, Foley, Alabama, 36535), the Tennessee Valley Region (415-H Church Street NW, Suite 201, Huntsville, Alabama, 35801), and the Florida Panhandle Region (130 Richard Jackson Blvd., Suite 104A, Panama City Beach, Florida, 32407). They have been proudly serving clients throughout the Southeastern United States since 2005. Learn more at www.HighlandGroup.org
