War Memorial Hall is a fixture in the college memories of Hokies spanning nearly 100 years. With renovations now complete, the iconic building offers future generations and alumni an updated, accessible, and enhanced facility centered around wellness.

“I used to go there to play racquetball a lot and I played intramural basketball there, but the building was always hot and felt like you were walking back into the 1970s,” said Travis Jessee ’05, interim assistant vice president for design and construction at Virginia Tech. “But we went because it was the largest rec facility on campus.”

War Memorial Hall — built in 1924 as a tribute to soldiers who died in World War I — hadn’t undergone such an extensive renovation process on a capital scale since 1975. Jessee has had several roles in the renovation of War Memorial Hall, and he was part of the conversations around the future of the building. He said faculty who have been at Virginia Tech for many years will appreciate the transformation, and students who are new to campus will be excited about all the building has to offer.

“War Memorial Hall has all new, historically accurate windows for the head house [the front of building], we’ve removed partitions to make the gymnasium space more open, and the lower level was completely demolished and rebuilt to provide modern cardio workout space,” said Jessee. “It’s a very handsome building, and I’m proud of the improvements.”

Travis Jessee '05 (at left), interim assistant vice president for design and construction. Virginia Tech photo

Student health and wellness

Student health and wellness was a core goal of the renovation plans for War Memorial Hall. The facility will house research space for the Department of Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise (HNFE), in addition to classroom space. This newly renovated research space will allow for clinical researchers in HNFE to have a state-of-the art facility to conduct their innovative research.

War Memorial Hall is also the home of Recreational Sports. Hokies will have access to exercise classes, as well as ten specialized spaces, including a boxing room, two rooms for dance organizations, a mind/body studio, yoga studio, spin studio, one squash court, and five racquetball courts.

Other features include:

  • Wet classroom for aquatic and safety instruction
  • 7,000 square-foot table tennis space
  • Basketball courts with new hardwood floors
  • Modern locker rooms and bathrooms that include family changing rooms and an all-gender restroom featuring private stalls with a shared space for handwashing
  • Centralized air conditioning
  • New plumbing and electrical systems
  • Energy-efficient LED lighting
The basketball courts in War Memorial Hall have new flooring. Photo by Noah Alderman for Virginia Tech.
The pool inside War Memorial Hall is renovated. Photo by Noah Alderman for Virginia Tech.

Membership and events

There are several events scheduled around the reopening of War Memorial Hall, including self-guided tours, exercise classes, and a grand reopening celebration on Sept. 6 at 3:30 p.m. For up-to-date information, visit recsports.vt.edu/events.

Recreational Sports offers a variety of membership options to various campus community groups to help meet fitness needs. Undergraduate and graduate students enrolled full and part time who pay the recreational fee have access to War Memorial Hall, as well as McComas Hall and the Rec Sports Field House, during normal operational hours. Faculty and staff can try out a membership for one free, 30-day all-access membership to the facility, free group exercise classes, and free towel service.

For a comprehensive list of membership rates for students, employees, alumni, and guests, visit recsports.vt.edu/membership.

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