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| Artist's rendering of Saint Louis University's on-campus, multipurpose arena. The University expects to break ground in September. |
Saint Louis University’s Board of Trustees has approved a resolution giving authority for construction of the University’s new $80 million on-campus, multipurpose Arena project. At their meeting May 6, the Trustees also gave approval for the University to begin taking steps to issue bonds for the project. The Arena will be funded through fund raising, $8 million in TIF funding and bonds, which will be paid off with revenues from the Arena.
“I am excited we will have such an outstanding facility that will serve the needs of the University and the entire St. Louis community, and that we are so close to breaking ground on the project,” said University President Lawrence Biondi, S.J. “I want to again thank our Trustees for their support and commitment to moving this Arena project forward.”
The Arena will be located on University-owned property near the intersection of Compton Avenue and Interstate 64/Highway 40. Construction is scheduled to begin in September, with projected completion in March 2008.
The Arena complex will include a 10,600-seat Arena, a two-court practice facility and athletic department offices and support facilities, including state-of-the-art strength and conditioning and sports medicine areas. As the project design moved forward, 600 additional seats have been added to the Arena for basketball. At 10,600 seats, the SLU Arena will have the second largest capacity in the Atlantic 10 Conference.
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Artist's rendering of the bowl of the arena.
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In addition, the University expects the Arena to host more than 90 events in its first year of operation, including men’s and women’s basketball, concerts, family shows, sporting events, trade shows and many other events. The University has previously announced that Global Spectrum, a leader in management of arenas, stadiums and other facilities, has been selected to manage the SLU Arena. Global Spectrum is currently assisting the University with a variety of pre-opening activities.
The University is currently reviewing proposals from three construction firms interested in building the Arena complex. Proposals have been received from Alberici, Clayco and Hunt Construction.
“The fact that we have three outstanding companies excited about partnering with SLU on this project ensures that we will have one of the finest arenas in the Midwest,” said Arena Project Manager Jeff Fowler. “We hope to have a decision on a construction partner within the next month.”
The Arena will be a prominent presence on the eastern end of the SLU campus and will be visible to hundreds of thousands of vehicles that pass by each year on I-64/Highway 40.
“In addition to being a fantastic place for basketball, this new facility will greatly assist in our efforts to recruit the finest student-athletes to Saint Louis University,” said Director of Athletics Cheryl Levick. “All of our coaches and athletes are excited to see this new Arena complex so close to breaking ground.”
Groundbreaking will take place by September, and the University expects to announce the date for groundbreaking this summer.
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