It’s an exciting time to be a part of Arizona Athletics, as the University is already upgrading and updating facilities around the campus.
It takes money to be competitive in the world of college athletics, and no one is more familiar with this than the Arizona Athletics Department, who are in the midst of infusing a ton of money for necessary facility upgrades and improvements.
If you haven’t been paying attention, the school was approved by the Arizona Board of Regents (ABOR) for $66 million in renovations. It will be funded by a combination of private donations, as well as the newly implemented student fee.
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The budget would go towards making improvements to Arizona Stadium, the Hillenbrand Aquatic Center, and Hillenbrand Softball Stadium.
Additionally, Arizona was finally approved to build a long, overdue indoor practice facility for the football team!
Here is the list of projects, with their forecasted budget(s), and estimated construction time according to the schools’ Planning, Design & Construction website:
- Hillenbrand Aquatic Center
- Budget: $13.25 million
- Construction Schedule: April 2018-December 2018
- You can also follow the live build here
- According to the schools’ website, this project will provide replacement to the current Pump/Filtration and Chemical Room. The pools structural integrity is severely degraded and the mechanical filtration system is corroded and unsafe. The new pool will not only be significantly longer (70m) but will have state-of-the-art technology for practicing and for competition. The pool will also accommodate multiple bulkheads. The Old Dive Pool will be demolished to create the space needed for the longer pool.
- Hillenbrand Softball Stadium
- Budget: $8 million
- Construction Schedule: June 2018-January 2019
- There is no live feed yet
- According to the schools’ website, this project will add more sun shading, as well as new loge and standing areas. Upgrades will be made to the press box, dugouts, as well as replacing the backstop netting system, while adding new restrooms and concessions.
- Arizona Football Stadium
- Budget: $25 million
- Construction Schedule: January 2018-September 2018
- The live feed can be watched here
- According to the schools’ website, this project will be done in phases, starting with the East side of the stadium. This will improve the infrastructure, safety, code upgrades, circulation, restrooms, concessions and fan amenities. Adding new concessions and restrooms, as well as improving the student seating area, and the southeast entrance
- ICA Indoor Sports Center
- Budget: $16 million
- Construction Schedule: April 2018-January 2019
- Live construction of the facility can be watched here
- According the schools’ website, the new building will be located at the old Sancet Stadium site and current outdoor practice fields. The stadium will provide multi-use purposes of the facility that is envisioned to benefit multiple sports and could also possibly serve as an additional game day venue.
All of these upgrades are absolutely necessary and vital to the schools’ athletic success. If you want to be competitive in the world of college athletics, you need to at least be on equal footing with everyone else out there!
Must Read: More on Arizona Athletics
At Zona Zealots, we are excited to see the continued growth of the school and its athletic department, and can’t wait to see how these will impact Arizona’s Athletics! It’s an exciting time to be an Arizona Wildcat! Bear Down, Arizona!