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  • Ty Crauthers

    UCO Arcadia Lake groundbreaking

  • Ty Crauthers

    UCO Arcadia Lake groundbreaking

  • Ty Crauthers

    UCO Arcadia Lake groundbreaking

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July 30, 2008

Construction on UCO waterfront facility under way

Courtney Crauthers

EDMOND — The University of Central Oklahoma had its official groundbreaking for the Arcadia Lake Waterfront Facility Wednesday.

“We couldn’t be more happy to see this steel go up. Most universities don’t enjoy something like this. So many students are engaging in outdoor activities,” said Mark Herrin, director of UCO’s Wellness Center.

UCO began planning for the $1.2 million facility four years ago under a partnership with the City of Edmond and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The facility will offer students various outdoor activities, including kayaking and mountain biking.

“We know the importance of outdoor recreation for students to seniors,” said President W. Roger Webb. “This building is going to be a signature building, I believe, for Arcadia and the community.”

U.S. Paralympics gave UCO $25,000 to offer Adventure Therapy programs for soldiers coming back from war with life-changing disabilities. These programs include rowing, kayaking, the UCO ropes course and adapted mountain biking. Herrin said they will be able to use some of the funds to offer some of these programs at the waterfront facility.

Katrina Shaklee, assistant director of disabled sports, said 2008 marks the first year that adaptive rowing is part of the Paralympic games. The U.S. Paralympic Rowing Team has shown some interest in the new waterfront facility.

“We’re hoping they’ll relocate to Edmond,” Shaklee said.

UCO also has had a partnership with the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation to teach archery in public schools. They taught archery in eight schools when the program started and now they teach in 110 schools. Herrin said the facilitators of the program now will train at the waterfront facility.

The facility will have two classrooms for conducting research and hands-on types of classes.

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012412 ransbottom bracelet.jpg

PATTY MILLER | THE EDMOND SUN Laverne Ransbottom holds a silver MIA bracelet inscribed with her son's name. The bracelet was sent to Ransbottom after the death of Mary Milley of Maine who wore the bracelet every day for 39 years. In the frame are artifacts found in 2006 where Maj. Fredrick Ransbottom lost his life in 1968 at a military outpost in Kham Duc, Vietnam, including his class ring, billfold and a library card.

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