SPORTS + RECREATION

Submarkets

Sports + Recreation Expertise

Elevating the game by enhancing athletic and recreational experiences

Sports and recreation spaces not only promote health and wellness, they make life meaningful. They create a sense of place for people to come together to celebrate the big wins, relax and unwind, and connect to the natural world.

Whether you are looking to build a competitive, regional sports destination or a serene landscape for passive recreation, we can help you elevate design in new ways so that everyone from ardent sports fans to emerging rock climbers can discover the unexpected within the familiar.

One Firm. One Team. Multi-Disciplinary Solutions in Architecture, Engineering, Environmental, and Planning.

Athletics

ISG's sports and recreation experts specialize in enhancing your field performance, player safety, and fan engagement. From choosing the right synthetic turf to optimizing sightlines, we create unforgettable spaces. We prioritize listening and offering alternatives—crafting designs that mirror your vision and goals without unnecessary complexity.

Signing with ISG means stepping into a team-oriented atmosphere. We collaborate, hustle, and celebrate victories together to foster a unified effort. From the starting block to the finish line, ISG’s sports and recreation professionals design spaces where athletes and communities go to compete, grow, learn, and connect. Through detailed evaluation of dimension, orientation, material, and more, ISG designs the best fields, courts, and sports facilities for your competition needs.

Expertise

  • Athletic Complexes
  • Concessions, Restrooms, and Press Boxes
  • Domes + Multi-Purpose Facilities
  • Field Houses
  • Fitness + Recreation Centers
  • Gymnasiums
  • Indoor/Outdoor Ice Rinks
  • Locker Rooms + Player Areas
  • Sports Courts
  • Stadiums
  • Synthetic Turf + Natural Grass Fields
  • Wellness Studios

Athletics Portfolio

Parks, Trails, and Urban Areas

Our work echoes our personal values, bringing more creativity and sense of ownership to each project. The sports and recreation team stays up to date on key trends in parks and trails design for urban and rural communities. Using a holistic approach, we tailor trends and implement best practices for your community.

ISG's creative mix of disciplines, such as landscape architects, community planners, environmental scientists, and engineers, transform everyday spaces in surprising new ways so everyone from bicycle enthusiasts to emerging rock climbers can discover the unexpected within the familiar.

Expertise

  • Campgrounds
  • Community Gardens + Edible Landscapes
  • Community Pools, Splash Pads, Fountains, and Water Features
  • Fishing Piers, Docks, Observation Decks, Waterway Access, and Marinas
  • Gateway + Wayfinding Signage
  • Gathering Nodes
  • Historic Building Preservation
  • Integration of Memorials + Specialty Art
  • Multi-Modal + Water and Nature Trails
  • Park Shelters + Community Pavilions
  • Playgrounds, Playscapes, and Exploration Areas
  • State, Regional, and Local Parks and Trails
  • Urban Parks, Plazas, and Courtyards

Parks, Trails, and Urban Areas Portfolio

Community + Entertainment Venues

Applying a holistic lens, ISG evaluates projects of every size and scale for constructability—translating designs into built projects.  Our extensive expertise spans a range of facilities, from community recreation centers to stadiums, reflecting versatile proficiency in designing recreational and entertainment spaces that transform into sought-after destinations.

We employ a community-centric approach, fostering consensus and connectivity within communities. This ensures that our facilities resonate with the needs and desires of diverse local populations to encompass your families, businesses, and specific user groups.

Expertise

  • Amphitheater + Event Spaces
  • Community + Recreation Centers
  • FEMA Rated Storm Shelters

Community + Entertainment Venues Portfolio

sports + recreation

Featured Work

The ISG

Difference

ISG’s competitive and passionate sports and recreation team is comprised not only of architect and engineering professionals, but former record-setting college athletes, coaches, sports fans, and recreation enthusiasts.

We understand sports and recreation from the athlete’s perspective. Whether you are looking to build a new sports arena, community plaza, or nature-based playground, we will work alongside you to reimagine your space for the ultimate fan and athlete experience.

  • Dynamic Team Roster
  • Passionate With a Competitive Edge
  • Destination Sports + Recreation Spaces

Business Unit Experts

Amanda Prosser, PLA

Sports + Recreation Business Unit Leader

Jeremy Wiesen, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP

Architecture Practice Group Leader

Darren Blue

Sports + Recreation Development Strategist

Mitchell Workmon, PLA

Landscape Architecture Practice Group Leader

Amanda Thomas, PE

Civil Engineer

Applied Tech in Action

Geographic Information System (GIS)

Using geographic information systems (GIS) integrated with Esri software, we develop valuable geospatial mapping tools that enable informed decision-making by incorporating demographic, psychographic, and socioeconomic data into visual representations.

360° Tours

Our fast-capture drone photography captures aerial, roof, or ground level imagery to create 360-degree tours that place future development plans in the context of existing spaces, helping you make better decisions faster.

"ISG has been great from top to bottom, the design, the talent, the skill set, the knowledge, the technology that they have was all top of top of the list as far as people that we've worked with in the past,

But also it was the people is the ability to get here on campus, travel, come meet with us, interact with us, ask us questions, challenge us in in a positive manner and really get the best out of us, which really was was a was a really big win for us because we also got the best out of them."

Steve Young
Sanford Sports Complex, President
ISG architecture & design company. Let's get in touch.

The Latest at ISG

Elevating Play: ISG’s Innovative Approach to Multi-Purpose Athletic Field Design

The trend of multi-purpose athletic fields is rapidly growing in K-12 and community sports. This surge is driven by the escalating costs of construction and the increasing need for flexible fields that accommodate multiple sports and extend outdoor seasons.

Industry Insights

Designing Safe + Sustainable River Access Points

As water-based recreation gains popularity, the demand for well-designed river access points rises. Whether for kayaking, boating, or canoeing, properly designed access points provide safe, convenient, and accessible water trail experiences. ISG’s Sports + Recreation team excels at creating solutions that blend functionality, sustainability, and beauty within the natural environment.

Industry Insights

Sports Complexes: How Proven Investments Benefit Players, Fans, and Communities

With more than 50 years of history, ISG Field has inspired enough stories to fill a book. From young players learning to swing a bat to competitive amateur adult leagues, the field has provided hours of play time and spectator viewing entertainment. Maintaining and operating a large sports complex like ISG Field is a significant enterprise, keeping team owners and managers seeking new ways to fill the seats.

Industry Insights

Franklin Rogers to get a $3 million face-lift

“The Frank” won’t have to be renamed “The Filet Mignon,” but Mankato’s utilitarian ballpark will become somewhat more ritzy by the start of the 2018 baseball season.

Press Releases

Green Rooms, Hockey Pucks, and Ball Rooms – Local Civic Center That Can Do It All

While Mankato already has landed itself on the Forbes best list for its vibrant culture and community, the Verizon Wireless Center positively adds to the street cred in this progressive area of southern Minnesota - the birthplace of ISG.

Industry Insights