Roseburg Area Chamber of Commerce
UCC Cuts the Ribbon on New Track & Field Complex, Opening a New Chapter for Riverhawk Athletics
A community investment in student-athletes, regional competition and the economic vitality of Douglas County.
8/30/2026
Community Investment
Beyond the Finish Line: UCC Opens Its New Track & Field Complex
A milestone more than three decades in the making, and a new opportunity for businesses across Douglas County.
Donors, community partners, UCC leadership and Riverhawk student-athletes gather for the ribbon cutting at the new UCC Track & Field Complex Sponsored by Rogue Credit Union.
Umpqua Community College celebrated a milestone more than three decades in the making on Saturday, August 29, with the ribbon cutting and grand opening of its new Track & Field Complex.
For the Roseburg Area Chamber of Commerce, it was exciting to see a significant community investment officially come to life, one made possible through years of vision, persistence, philanthropy, partnership and a shared belief in what the facility could mean for UCC students and the greater community.
The morning was much more than a ceremonial opening. From a community pancake breakfast and the Riverhawk 5K to a Fastest Lap Competition, kids' races, facility tours and athlete demonstrations, the track was immediately filled with student-athletes, families, visitors and community members experiencing the new facility.
During the ribbon-cutting ceremony, UCC President & CEO Dr. Rachel Pokrandt reflected on the many people who played a role in bringing the project to life, recognizing the visionaries, builders, donors, staff, sponsors and student-athletes who helped carry the project across the finish line.
The grand opening marked a new chapter for Riverhawk Athletics and the culmination of years of work to return collegiate track and field competition to UCC.
A Vision Made Possible by Determination
Pokrandt gave special recognition to Shelley Briggs Loosley, whose leadership, persistence and commitment helped move the project from an idea to reality.
“If any of you know Shelley, she is a force to be reckoned with.”
Dr. Rachel Pokrandt, UCC President & CEO
Shelley Briggs Loosley shares a moment with a former Riverhawk student-athlete just after the ribbon was cut.
Pokrandt credited Shelley's determination with helping ensure the funds were raised and the project was ultimately completed.
The Briggs Loosley Foundation and the John & Jean Loosley Charitable Foundation provided transformational gifts that helped turn the vision into the track now beneath the feet of Riverhawk athletes.
Projects of this magnitude rarely happen because of one moment or one decision. They happen because individuals and organizations continue to believe in an idea long enough to see it through. For our Chamber, that kind of commitment is an important example of what community investment can accomplish.
Building a Program Worthy of the Facility
Pokrandt then turned her attention to what she called the project's “master builder,” Head Track & Field and Cross Country Coach Alan King.
In this case, she explained, building was about much more than the physical facility. A track is only a shell without the athletes, coaches and programming that bring it to life.
King joined UCC in the fall of 2018 with a charge to strengthen the college's cross-country program and rebuild Track & Field, bringing the program back for the first time since 1992. Today, more than 60 students participate in the program.
Riverhawk Track & Field under Coach Alan King
43 All-American honors
25 NWAC championships
5 NJCAA All-American honors
1 National junior college record
UCC has also finished among the top three in its league four times while competing against much larger metropolitan schools.
Pokrandt also drew laughs while recognizing the reality of working at a smaller institution, sharing some of the many “other duties as assigned” King has taken on while building the program.
Her larger point was clear: long before UCC had a facility matching the caliber of its athletes, King and his student-athletes were already building a program worthy of one.
Now, they have a place to call home.
A Community of Supporters
The ribbon cutting also provided an opportunity to recognize the individuals, foundations and community partners who invested in the project.
Pokrandt recognized Steve Loosley and Shelley Briggs Loosley, Eric and Kristen Ball, Pat and Julee Wright, Brent and Heidi Eichman, Jacky and Rick Sohn, and Mike and Lori Keller for the financial contributions that helped make the facility possible.
Her remarks captured what community philanthropy represents at its best:
“Donating your hard-earned money to the college is an act of faith in the future and love of our small but mighty institution.”
Dr. Rachel Pokrandt, UCC President & CEO
The generosity represented in this project is about far more than construction. It represents people choosing to invest in students they may never meet and opportunities that will continue long after the ribbon-cutting celebration is over.
A Chamber Perspective
Community investment is not simply about funding a project. It is about businesses, foundations and individuals choosing to invest in assets that strengthen the community for generations to come.
The Team That Turned the Vision Into Reality
Pokrandt also recognized the team responsible for turning years of planning, fundraising and construction into a finished facility.
She thanked Jim Epley, Craig Jackson, Natalia Brown, Josh Ogle, Leah Jones and Jessica Paugh for managing the countless details required to move the project forward, from site plans, schematics and deliveries to deadlines, weather and even the occasional deer.
Big projects may start with bold ideas, but they become reality through the work of people who manage thousands of details between concept and completion. Their contribution is an important part of what the community celebrated Saturday.
Rogue Credit Union Makes a Five-Year Commitment
The new facility also represents a significant partnership with Rogue Credit Union, which became UCC Track & Field's first-ever title sponsor through a five-year commitment to the facility and community.
The facility is officially recognized as the UCC Track & Field Complex Sponsored by Rogue Credit Union.
That partnership represents more than a name on a facility. Long-term business investment in education, students and community assets creates opportunities that can extend well beyond the original contribution.
Pokrandt also recognized Derek Simmons and Simmons Law for their generous ongoing sponsorship of the track facility.
Together, the donors, sponsors, foundations, employees and community partners behind this project demonstrate what can happen when organizations and individuals unite around a shared vision for their community.
The New Facility Immediately Comes to Life
The ribbon cutting was only the beginning of Saturday morning. Almost immediately, the facility went to work.
Opening Morning at the Track
7:30 a.m. Race registration opens
8:00 a.m. Community pancake breakfast
8:30 a.m. Welcome and ribbon cutting
9:00 a.m. Riverhawk 5K
9:10 a.m. Fastest Lap Competition
9:30 a.m. Kids Dash, 50-meter and 100-meter races
10:00 a.m. Facility tours
10:30 a.m. Athlete demonstrations
The Riverhawk 5K started and finished on UCC's new track, welcoming community runners and walkers while also serving as an early-season competition for regional cross-country athletes.
Published local sports schedules identified Glide, Camas Valley, Sutherlin and Yoncalla among the schools competing at the Riverhawk 5K. North Bend's Cross Country teams also traveled to UCC to open their fall season at the event, and Grants Pass Cross Country athletes were represented among those competing.
Family-friendly activities continued throughout the morning, with announcements and music provided by Eric with Say Yes to the DJ.
For those attending, it was an opportunity to do much more than look at a newly completed facility. Visitors watched athletes compete, children race and student-athletes demonstrate their skills while regional teams arrived ready for competition.
The ribbon had barely been cut, and the facility was already doing what its supporters envisioned: bringing athletes, families and communities together.
Connecting Generations of Riverhawks
One of the most meaningful stories Pokrandt shared connected today's Riverhawks with athletes who competed for UCC nearly five decades ago.
UCC alumnus Tim Molinari traveled across the country to participate in the celebration. Molinari came to UCC in 1977 largely for the opportunity to run track and cross country. During his time as a Riverhawk, he set two school records, including a 1,500-meter record that stood for an incredible 49 years.
That record was recently broken by current Riverhawk John Patterson. Pokrandt reflected on the significance of seeing a current Riverhawk build upon an accomplishment established by someone who competed for UCC nearly five decades earlier.
Molinari has described UCC as a transformational step in his life, shaping him academically and personally before he continued his education at Oregon State University. Now he is paying that experience forward by establishing an endowment for UCC Track & Field and Cross Country, supporting the program and its athletes for years to come.
It is a fitting example of what this project represents: one generation creating opportunities for the next.
Beyond the Finish Line: An Economic Development Opportunity
While the ribbon cutting appropriately centered on UCC, its students and the many people who made the facility possible, the Roseburg Area Chamber of Commerce also sees another exciting opportunity ahead. Opening morning offered a small glimpse of it.
Athletes were already coming to Roseburg from communities throughout Douglas County and from areas such as North Bend and Grants Pass. As the facility hosts future track meets, cross-country events, invitationals, youth competitions, camps and regional gatherings, those athletes can bring coaches, parents, siblings, grandparents and spectators with them.
And those visitors become customers for businesses throughout our community.
“This is the kind of community investment that can create impact well beyond the facility itself. From an economic development perspective, every competition hosted here creates an opportunity to bring new people into Douglas County, generate visitor spending and support local businesses. Our job as a community is to turn those event visits into longer stays and give families a reason to experience everything Roseburg and Douglas County have to offer.”
Kira Zavala, President & CEO, Roseburg Area Chamber of Commerce
A track meet itself may last only a few hours. The visitor activity surrounding it can extend across an entire weekend.
Hotels benefit from overnight stays. Restaurants serve athletes and families. Visitors purchase fuel, shop locally and seek out entertainment and recreation. Some may discover a business or attraction they return to long after the competition is over.
Sports Tourism Is Big Business in Oregon
Oregon data shows just how significant sports-related travel can become. A statewide study from Sport Oregon and ECOnorthwest found that spectator sporting events attracted approximately 1.3 million nonlocal visitors to Oregon in 2024.
Spectator sporting events in Oregon, 2024
Source: Sport Oregon and ECOnorthwest
$304 million
in direct visitor spending
223,000
hotel room nights, approximately
$1.7 billion
in statewide economic output, at minimum
8,700
jobs supported, approximately
Those numbers should not be interpreted as a projection of what UCC's facility itself will generate. They do, however, demonstrate the scale of the sports-travel economy and why communities across Oregon are paying attention to it.
There is another important piece of the research: the study did not capture participatory sporting events, youth tournaments or many community-based competitions.
Those are precisely the kinds of events that can matter to communities like Roseburg, not necessarily one enormous event, but multiple high school, collegiate, youth and amateur competitions bringing new visitors throughout the year.
Turning Competition Into a “Tourna-Cation”
Another trend within sports tourism fits Douglas County particularly well: the “tourna-cation.” The term combines “tournament” and “vacation” and describes families planning a mini vacation around an athletic tournament or sporting event.
While the term originated around tournaments, the same behavior can happen around track meets, cross-country invitationals and other athletic competitions.
A family traveling to Roseburg because their child is competing at UCC may initially intend to drive in, attend the event and go home.
But what if they arrive Friday instead? That could mean a hotel stay and dinner at a local restaurant.
What if, after Saturday's competition, they decide to stay through Sunday?
Reasons to stay another day in Douglas County
Visit Wildlife Safari • Explore downtown Roseburg • Discover a winery • Hike to a waterfall • Spend time along the North Umpqua River • Shop locally
Suddenly, a trip that began because of an athletic event becomes a family getaway. And every additional day matters.
One additional night can mean another lodging stay, additional meals, fuel purchases, retail spending, recreation and more opportunities for local businesses to benefit.
Tourism Already Matters to Our Economy
Douglas County already has a significant visitor economy.
Travel spending in Douglas County
Source: Travel Oregon 2025 economic-impact data
$323.2 million
in direct travel spending
3,530
jobs supported, approximately
$12.6 million
in state and local tax revenue
Statewide, visitors generated approximately $14.6 billion in Oregon travel spending in 2025, directly supporting roughly 122,900 jobs.
Sports tourism gives Douglas County another opportunity to participate in that economy. And that is what makes the new facility particularly interesting from an economic-development perspective.
The UCC Track & Field Complex does not compete with our existing tourism assets. It gives visitors a new reason to encounter them.
The competition can be the reason they come. Douglas County can give them the reasons to stay.
What Comes Next
Toward the conclusion of the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Pokrandt illustrated just how much went into building the facility.
What it took to build the track
1,900 tons of asphalt
10,200 tons of aggregate
100 tons of sand
180 cubic yards of concrete
7,000 sq meters of high-performance rubber
Those numbers demonstrate the physical scale of the project. But they do not capture what makes the facility important.
That can be measured in the determination of those who refused to let go of the vision. It can be measured in donors willing to invest in students and the future of UCC.
It can be measured in a coach who rebuilt a program, athletes who competed and succeeded before they had a permanent home, community partners who stepped forward and employees who turned plans into reality. It can be measured in children who had an opportunity to run across the new track on opening morning.
And, in the years ahead, it may also be measured in the athletes, families and visitors who travel to Douglas County because an event at UCC gave them a reason to come.
The UCC Track & Field Complex is first and foremost a home for Riverhawk student-athletes. It is also a community asset with the potential to create opportunities well beyond campus.
With continued collaboration among UCC, event organizers, Experience Roseburg, lodging partners, restaurants, retailers, attractions and the greater business community, those opportunities can reach businesses throughout Roseburg and Douglas County.
Some visitors will come because their child, family member or team is competing. Our opportunity as a community is to make sure they discover plenty of reasons to stay.
“Thank you to our community for believing in UCC, and welcome to your new track.”
Dr. Rachel Pokrandt, UCC President & CEO
The Roseburg Area Chamber of Commerce is excited to see the athletes who will compete here, the records that will be broken and the generations of Riverhawks who will call this facility home. We are equally excited to see how this investment can attract visitors, strengthen local businesses and contribute to the continued economic vitality of Douglas County.
Saturday celebrated the completion of an incredible community project. What happens next could create an impact that reaches far beyond the finish line.
Visitors are coming. Let's be ready for them.
When a meet brings athletes and families to Roseburg, our businesses are what they experience next. If you want to talk through how yours can welcome them, we would love to hear from you.
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