As the saying goes, everything is bigger in Texas—and Crowley High School in Fort Worth is proving just that. The school recently unveiled plans for a jaw-dropping $150 million indoor and outdoor track and field facility, and, frankly, it looks more like a college arena or Olympic team training ground than a typical high school setup.
Designed by VLK Architects, the world-class complex will primarily serve students in the Crowley Independent School District, which includes three high schools. But this isn’t just for gym class. The facility will host regional and state-level track meets, wrestling, volleyball and basketball tournaments, and even concerts, thanks to its 3,500-seat indoor arena.
The centrepiece of the venue? A 200-metre indoor track with a hydraulic banking system—one of only 17 like it in the entire U.S. Just outside the arena, there’s a 400-metre outdoor track and a 5,000-seat stadium. Yes, you read that right. A 5,000-seat stadium. For high school. Even though Crowley High School itself only has 2,500 students.
The track at my high school in Newmarket, Ont., was a 350-metre gravel oval with weeds sprouting across lanes one to three. I guess it worked, but barely. Compared to this? It’s like measuring a parking lot to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
There’s no confirmed opening date for the Crowley ISD Indoor Arena, but once completed, it will become the most expensive high school athletic facility in Texas, and the second most expensive in the U.S., behind the $175 million Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio, which doubles as a pro football venue and high school field for McKinley Senior High.
