STEWARD HEALTH CARE ACQUIRES NAMING RIGHTS TO WELLESLEY SPORTS CENTER, JOINS AS STRENGTH, CONDITIONING AND PHYSICAL THERAPY PARTNER
BOSTON SPORTS INSTITUTE TO OPEN SUMMER 2019
(Wellesley, MA) – JULY 10, 2019 – The Wellesley Sports Center and its managing partner ESG Associates (EDGE Sports Group) announced today that Steward Health Care has acquired naming rights for the new sports complex, and will serve as its physical therapy, strength, and conditioning partner. The facility, scheduled to open this summer, will be named the Boston Sports Institute, a Steward Health Care Family Facility, consistent with the key role that Steward will play within the new complex. Steward Health Care will operate a new 6,890 square-foot practice within the facility, offering sports medicine and wellness services. St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center, a Steward Family Hospital, will be the facility’s official hospital.
“Steward Health Care’s focus on building healthy communities makes them a natural partner for the new sports complex,” said Brian DeVellis, president of ESG Associates and managing partner of the Boston Sports Institute. “By joining forces with Steward, we are strengthening the center’s offerings and its ability to serve as a community resource for the athletes, families and residents of Wellesley and its surrounding communities.”
The development of Steward’s program at the sports center gives athletes convenient access to conditioning to stay in peak shape, as well as training to prevent injuries, and provides immediate on-sight care in the event of an injury, plus rehabilitative post-injury care. The center is an extension of the exceptional sports medicine and wellness services Steward provides at St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center in Brighton, MA.
“The establishment of our Wellesley physical therapy and training center is an exciting new chapter in our extension of care in the communities we serve,” said Dr. Thomas Gill, IV, chairman of the Department of Orthopedics at St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center, and former team physician for the New England Patriots, Boston Red Sox, and Boston Bruins. “Our skilled trainers, physical therapists and physicians are proud to offer their expertise to help ensure the athletes we care for are always at the top of their game.”
“We look forward to serving the Greater Boston community and have a number of exciting things on tap that will set our program apart and make it a go-to destination for area athletes and their families,” said Dr. Michael Callum, president of Steward Medical Group. “We’re proud to be a part of this wonderful community resource and play a vital role in helping keep the community well.”
In addition to hosting local youth and high school programs in ice and sled hockey, figure skating, aquatics and turf programs, the Boston Sports Institute will support its patrons and townspeople with a best-in-class pro shop, grab-and-go café, strength training, educational tutors and therapy tenants.
Tenants of the sports complex include Charles River Aquatics, Inspirica, Terrier Sports, Profiler’s Edge and Driscoll Skating Skills. In addition, the Wellesley Sports Center will serve as home to Wellesley Youth Hockey, Wellesley Youth Lacrosse, Wellesley High School, MassBox Lax, Wellesley Scoops Field Hockey, Wellesley United Soccer Club, Boston Bolts Soccer, Jr. Eagles Hockey Club, and Dana Hall.
For more information, visit: https://bostonsportsinstitute.com.
About Steward Health Care:
Steward Health Care is the largest private, tax-paying physician-led health care network in the United States. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Steward operates 37 hospitals in the United States and the country of Malta that regularly receive top awards for quality and safety. The company employs approximately 42,000 health care professionals. The Steward network includes multiple urgent care centers and skilled nursing facilities, substantial behavioral health services, over 7,900 beds under management, and approximately 2.2 million full risk covered lives through the company’s managed care and health insurance services.
The Steward Health Care Network includes 5,000 physicians across 800 communities who help to provide more than 12 million patient encounters per year. Steward Medical Group, the company’s employed physician group, provides more than six million patient encounters per year. The Steward Hospital Group operates hospitals in Malta and nine states across the U.S., including Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Utah.
About the Boston Sports Institute, a Steward Family Facility:
The Boston Sports Institute, a Steward Family Facility, is conveniently located on Worcester Street (Route 9 eastbound) in Wellesley, MA, minutes from Interstate 95 and the Massachusetts Turnpike and less than 30 minutes from Boston. In addition, Wellesley has three stops on the MBTA Commuter Rail line into Boston.
The Boston Sports Institute, a Steward Family Facility, is a 130,000 square foot state-of-the-art sport and recreation destination housing twin ice sheets, an indoor synthetic turf field with elevated track, a warm lesson pool and a 13 lane / 25 yard competition pool, a strength and conditioning center, sports pro-shop, full service concessions and ancillary tenants.
The Boston Sports Institute, a Steward Family Facility, is being developed and professionally managed by EDGE Sports Group (ESG Associates Incorporated), a leader in the design, development and operations of public / private recreational facilities from the East Coast to the Midwest.
About ESG Associates Inc (EDGE Sports Group)
ESG Associates Inc. is a leader in the design, development and operations of public and private recreational facilities. The company brings over 25 years of private and public recreational design experience and offers the full gamut of strategic and operational services. ESG helps clients navigate public processes at the local, state and federal levels; works with private capital and conventional lenders to obtain financing; and establishes the programming and operational framework required to sustain the model. Services include assessment, feasibility and market studies; design, permit and construction management; programming and operations.
Media Contacts
On behalf of ESG Associates, Inc.
Crystal Woody, Carlton PR and Marketing
781-457-6112, crystal@carltongroupmarketing.com
On behalf of Steward Health Care:
Maureen Amaral, Sr. Marketing Director, St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center
617-562-5676, Maureen.Amaral@Steward.org
WELLESLEY, MA — A new restaurant is opening for hungry parents watching their kids play hockey, soccer, and other sports. The Cheesy Street Grill, the award winning gourmet grilled cheese shop, is bringing a new location inside the concession area at the Wellesley Sports Center.
The 2018 Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce Up and Coming Small Business Award has plans to bring gourmet grilled cheese, sandwiches, and other comfort food to the sports center sometime this Summer. Cheesy Street Grill will also offer gluten-free options.
“We look forward to serving our delicious Grilled Cheese Sandwiches and other comfort foods to this amazing community of athletes, and their friends and family,” owner Lisa Dowd said in a statement.
The Wellesley sandwich shop will be Chessy Street Grill’s third location.Currently, Cheesy Street Grill is open for business at the Westborough Westbound Service Plaza and at the Natick Eastbound Service Plaza on the Massachusetts Turnpike (I-90).
Post by: The Patch Wellesley
Wellesley Sports Center Walkthrough
By Abby Patkin
Changes can be difficult to see in the view from Route 9, but inside the new Wellesley Sports Center, crews have been hard at work preparing for a spring opening.
The Townsman stopped by the 900 Worcester St. work site on Wednesday to tour the facilities and see how things are coming along.
Here are a few quick things to know:
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- The state-of-the-art facility will include twin ice rinks, two pools, turf, a fitness area, an elevated track, concessions and a pro-shop.
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- The rinks were originally set to open this winter, but the National Grid lockout delayed gas installation, pushing back the timeline. The Wellesley Sports Center is now scheduled to open this spring. If the center is able to have gas to the site by mid-March, the contractor said they should be able to turn the rinks and turf over in May to make ice, with the aquatic and tenant build-out following, according to Brian DeVellis, president of managing partner Edge Sports Group. The final occupancy certificate is at the town’s discretion, he said.
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- The Wellesley Sports Center has partnered with several town and local recreation groups. For information on schedules and preferential access, check out this recent Townsman article: bit.ly/2RCt57A.
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- The ice rink named for the Dana Hall School will be ADA compliant, accessible to sled hockey teams.
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- There will be solar panels up on the center’s roof.
- Between full- and part-time employees, the center could bring up to 100 new jobs to Wellesley, according to DeVellis. He added that the center will try to source most of its staff locally.
Post by: Wellesley Wicked Local
Facilities and Public-Private Joint Ventures
Posted by Colleen O’Shea | Jan 23, 2019 | Management
Many municipalities, schools and colleges offering sports programs are finding themselves in a facilities crunch. Often, their existing facility is in dire need of an upgrade, and their needs may have changed since their current facility was constructed. Maybe facility management is not their strong suit and they would prefer to hand their future build over to a professional management team. Or it may be all about the financials, with needs being a portion of the total slots available.
That’s where Brian DeVellis and ESG Associates comes in. The Massachusetts-based firm excels at public-private collaboration on year round athletic facilities, helping its clients cover all bases — venue design, permitting, construction oversight and operations. DeVellis is the President of ESG Associates and, with a background in law and landscape architecture, has been developing partnerships with towns and schools that work for everyone.
“Groups call us telling us, ‘There’s a Request for Proposal (RSP) out and we want you to respond to it’,” DeVellis says. “It’s a phenonemon that’s been taking off over the past decade,” he says. “We’re riding the wave, and the towns we’re in appreciate it.”
Town of Wellesley and ESG
One of their current projects is the Wellesley Sport Center, a massive 130,000 sq. ft. which will be housing twin rinks, swimming pools, a turf field, fitness, strength and conditioning areas as well as concessions. This is a public-private partnership between ESG and the Town of Wellesley, MA, , slated for opening in the spring of 2019.
The Town brought the land to the table: the Center is being built on land where a church once was. ESG responded to, and was awarded the RFP and negotiated a 50-year land lease — taking the control, construction and future operation out of the hands of the Town. In return, the Town, its high school and youth sports groups, will be given first pick for time slots – rented at market rates. Any leftover slots will be available for rent to outside groups. Town residents will be given preferred use, and the Town will benefit from property taxes from the venue, estimated at $200,000/year.
“Most towns are spending money building fire stations and schools,” DeVellis says. “Sports facilities are a needed asset — but they’re also a luxury many towns can’t afford. That’s why partnering with us makes so much sense. By privatizing these types of facilities by and having us work hand-in-hand with existing recreation programs, we’re able to provide not only a facility, but a partner.”
Project Timeline
On any project, ESG begins with a feasibility study, ensuring there is enough demand to support a year-round facility with multiple sports.
“Then we design it, work with the lenders to bring in equity, get the permits, build it and bring in an operations team six months in advance to set up the programs.” DeVellis says the programming for a facility like the Wellesley Sports Center will run the gamut, offering activities for all age groups, from hockey to pickleball, lacrosse to walking tracks.
“With any project, we need to be sure the demand is for more than one season and one surface,” says DeVellis. “We also need to understand our audience to offer services that fill their needs, like tutoring and take-home meals for parents. We try to cater to the whole family. We know the sports season isn’t just one month, or just one athlete. It’s the whole family.”
ESG has developed half a dozen facilities so far and each one of them is different. Often ESG will manage the operations but sometimes they put together the employee handbook, hire and train the staff and then hand over the keys.
“All our employees undergo a C.O.R.I. check (Criminal Offender Record Investigation) and are fingerprinted. Safety is critical and background checks are one way we keep our facilities safe. We also keep up on training, use the best technology and look for the best staff.”
The Bottom Line
This summer will mark a turning point for ESG and let them expand their offerings to include large tournaments. By then, they will manage multiple facilities, all within 40 minutes of each other, all in the greater Boston area. That will give them the flexibility they need to run and attract large tournaments to Boston, leveraging their ice hockey development and events partner, The AXE Sports Group, owners of the prestigious Hockey Night in Boston.
And although ESG has a foothold in Massachusetts, they have worked on a wide variety of consulting projects across the country. That includes a multi-purpose rink, indoor turf field and retail in Florida, collaboration with State universities in Nebraska and Arizona and The Golf Club of New England, a 7,673 yard Arnold Palmer-designed championship course on the New Hampshire seacoast.
“We’re in this to turn a profit for our investors,” DeVellis says. “With each one we develop, we redefine our model and, hopefully, our investors agree!”
WELLESLEY — Communities often dream of creating new indoor athletic facilities to benefit children, adults, and high school teams.
It took the closing of St. James the Great Church — and several years of planning — for such a dream to be realized in Wellesley. Next spring, a sparkling facility is scheduled to open with two ice rinks, two swimming pools, a strength and conditioning center, and a turf field with an elevated track.
The hoped-for December opening of the Wellesley Sports Center was pushed back due to bad weather and the inability to secure gas service to the site, according to the project’s builder, ESG Associates Inc. Non-emergency gas service projects have been delayed by the monthslong lockout of union gas workers by National Grid.
“Natural gas is essential for everything from heating the buildings and hot water to running the dehumidifiers for the ice rinks,” said Brian DeVellis, president of ESG, which will also operate the completed facility.
Once the center opens, preferred ice and pool times will be given to the high school, Dana Hall, Wellesley Youth Hockey, and the Wellesley Swim Association. The center will also offer recreational skating and pool times to the public. In addition, the facility will be available to rent to other area organizations and sports groups.
“We’ll be able to change our dinner hours,” said Jennifer Dutton, coach of the girls’ and boys’ swim teams at Wellesley High. “I haven’t been home for dinner for almost 20 years.”
Wellesley’s boys’ and girls’ hockey teams have practiced and played games at nearby Babson College for many years. They had hoped to be the first teams to play in the Wellesley Sports Center this month.
However, the construction delay has forced the teams to seek ice time at other facilities. Wellesley High athletic director John Brown has worked out most of the scheduling with Babson, as well as surrounding facilities.
Once the rinks open, “it will be nice for the players to eliminate 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. practices out of town,” said boys’ hockey coach Paul Donato. “We’re really looking forward to a first-class facility in Wellesley.”
“We’ve practiced all hours of the day,” said Dutton, the swim coach. “It’s pretty amazing something like this can happen in Wellesley.”
“There was a strong need for recreational resources in town,” said Wellesley’s planning director, Michael Zehner. Buying the St. James site was “a unique way for it to happen.”
The Boston archdiocese closed St. James in 2004 and eventually sold the property to the town for $3.8 million, with additional costs for demolition, abatement, and study bringing the total to about $4.5 million, according to town officials. In 2015, the church’s dusty walls came down.
In 2017, the town signed a long-term lease with Wellesley Sports Group LLC, a development team led by DeVellis. ESG is responsible for building, controlling, and operating the facility.
“This complex is an excellent example of what can be done with public/private partnerships,” DeVellis said.
One rink will seat about 1,000 people, which would accommodate the crowds expected when Wellesley High plays archrivals like Needham and Natick.
“I’m excited,” said Brown, anticipating the grand opening. “When it’s done it’s going to be beautiful.”
Dutton, the swim coach, said “I hope things go as planned. Things happen, things pop up some times.” And so they have, not unusual in major building projects.
But the future looks bright. “I’ve spent 10 years of my life on this,” said Andy Wrobel, who was on the planning committee. “I couldn’t be prouder. It’s the legacy we’ll leave behind.”
Lenny Megliola | Boston Globe
Lenny Megliola can be reached at lennymegs41@gmail.com. Follow on Twitter @lennymegs.