A $1 million grant from the Bill and Joan Alfond Foundation will pay half the costs of a new Carrabassett Valley Academy training center at Sugarloaf.

The grant, announced Monday, will help pay for the construction of an 11,000-square-foot competition center. Construction of the facility is expected to begin in May and be finished by the end of November 2016. Plans call for day lodge space, tuning and waxing facilities, locker rooms, a trainers’ room, meeting space and offices.

“Competition has been at the heart of our organizations from the very beginning and this new facility will allow us to expand this tradition, bolstering Sugarloaf’s standing as a world-class competition venue, providing a new home for the Sugarloaf Ski Club and offering a warm and welcoming hub for the next generation of athletes and their families,” said Earle Morse, chairman of the CVA board of trustees, in a release.

The new building is expected to be fully operational and tested in advance of the U.S. Alpine Championships, which return to Sugarloaf in March 2017. In addition to the lead gift from the Alfonds, Carrabassett Valley Academy and the Sugarloaf Ski Club are working to raise an additional $850,000 needed to complete the project.

The new center will be named for Bill and Joan Alfond in recognition of their generosity and support of the project.

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