VMDO Architects

Three decades in the making, the Athletics Precinct has undergone a significant transformation, with Palmer Park signaling an important chapter in UVA's athletics legacy. Softball is one of the most popular collegiate sports on television and the ACC Network will utilize the new facility to televise several games in 2020 and beyond. Combined with softball’s growing popularity, this new exposure and the new stadium will impact both softball and women’s sports in vital ways at UVA. Nestled alongside Lannigan Field (track and field) and east of Klockner Stadium (soccer), the new Softball Stadium is located at the heart of the “Park of Parks” also near Disharoon Park (baseball), John Paul Jones Arena (basketball), and the George Welsh Indoor Practice Facility (football) – each designed by VMDO.

The stadium functions as both a game-day stadium and a new state-of-the-art training facility that elevates UVA's softball program and women's sports within the growing Athletics Precinct. The Softball team vacated an outdated field in a remote location and began to play at Palmer Park for the 2020 season in a new highly visible site at the center of the Athletic Precinct. In addition to heightened visibility, this move has allowed the team to work together in one location for training, practice, and play – creating efficient operations that allow the players and coaches to focus on development and training.

The architectural language of Palmer Park draws from its immediate neighbors and the rich history and legacy of UVA’s Grounds. Brick is the predominant material of the constructed edges on Massie and Copeley Roads, employed as both a base for the stadium superstructure and the skin of the Player Development Center. Stone site walls form a base for the building and help negotiate the grades at the entrance. The lightweight roof hovers above the concourse and press box, partially sheltering the grandstands and helping to support the backstop netting.

Palmer Park brings all of Virginia softball’s needs to one location. The facility features an indoor player development center, locker room, team lounge, training room, press box and meeting spaces among other amenities. The field is lit by LED field lights, a first for UVA. The ballpark features both chairback and grandstand seating behind home plate, grass hillside seating down the right field line and a berm for patrons beyond the outfield wall. The player development center features three batting cages and a dedicated pitching lane along with additional instructional space. The space can also be used for infield practice with the cages retracted. Beneath the main concourse of the stadium sits the locker room, team lounge, training room, equipment room, and meeting spaces.

Palmer Park is the first athletics competition site at UVA named for a former female student-athlete, UVA standout Lisa Palmer pitched for the Cavaliers from 1986-89, establishing school records in wins (74), innings pitched (861.2), complete games (102) and games started (112). She co-holds the school record for wins in a single season with 27 victories in the circle during the 1988 campaign. Palmer was the first UVA softball player to have her jersey number, 22, retired.