Updated: Thursday, Jan. 30, 2020 at 11:46 a.m.

GW’s plans to replace the Smith Center pool with additional basketball courts will align with rising Atlantic 10 standards, officials said.

Officials initially proposed expanding the Smith Center and filling in its pool at a Foggy Bottom and West End Advisory Neighborhood Commission earlier this month. Tanya Vogel, the director of athletics, said the renovations will help the athletics department recruit top athletes and give teams enough space for both Division I student-athletes and club and varsity athletes to practice.

“The Atlantic 10 Conference is driven by basketball success, and having a basketball practice facility is becoming a standard,” Vogel said in an email. “The facility will aid in recruiting top talent while allowing our current student-athletes a dedicated space to train.”

She said the team is looking into multiple venues for a new training facility with “larger, deeper pools to sustain a high level of success.”

Vogel said the change would be funded from donations and corporate sponsorships if and when it is approved. The department has experience handling “public-private” partnerships to allow other teams to practice off campus, she said.

“We’ve seen the benefits of a public-private partnership with Arlington County and our baseball program, while our gymnasts, golfers, tennis players, rowers, runners and sailors often practice and compete off-campus,” Vogel said.

The Smith Center was revamped over the summer with an updated court design and a new scoreboard. Prior to the start of the men’s and women’s basketball seasons, the Smith Center also received an updated food and beverage menu that included beer sales.

Vogel added that the Smith Center houses more than athletic events, hosting research days, career and graduate school fairs and the annual midnight breakfast before fall semester finals.

“Currently, when we host these events, our teams go across the street to Lerner Health and Wellness to practice,” Vogel said. “This displaces our club and intramural sport programs, so a dedicated practice space will limit this disruption.”

Editor’s note: This post was updated to clarify a quote from Tanya Vogel.