Miami University's site selection committee, consisting of faculty, staff, and alumni, has chosen Cook Field, the college's intramural sports facility, as its top location for a potential new multi-purpose arena.
The committee recommends moving the intramural fields near Millett Hall, Miami's current basketball arena, which opened in 1968.
Athletic Director David Saylor presented the recommendation to the university's Board of Trustees Friday and broke down the preliminary cost estimates for the construction project. On top of constructing a new arena, the project also would require the demolition of Millett Hall, the installation of new turf fields near Millett, and the construction of a surface parking lot next to the new arena.
In total, the proposed project would cost upwards of $200 million.
Saylor told trustees the benefits of a new multipurpose arena would outweigh the initial expense. He says the country's top basketball programs refuse to play at Millett Hall because it's outdated and Miami isn't capitalizing on the lucrative opportunities within college basketball.
"We have to invest in the sport. We have to be involved in that," he said. "We could maybe strengthen our position but without the arena, that's impossible."
Miami University says much of the costs to build the arena would be offset by other already-funded projects and philanthropic gifts.
The university originally estimated renovations to the existing Millett Hall would cost around $80 million, but Treasurer David Creamer says getting the arena fully up-to-date would end up costing much more.
"You cannot renovate on that hall for $85 million. Immediately in walking into the facility, you can see the ADA issues in that building. Once you go into a facility and you make substantial improvements, you need to bring it up to today's code," Creamer said.
Saylor added that if the project is approved, the demolition of Millett Hall would allow the university to add more turf fields to its intramural facility, creating an improved site compared to the current site of Cook Field.
Still, not everybody wants to see Cook Field wiped away. As of Friday afternoon, a change.org petition to preserve Cook Field has nearly 3,000 verified signatures.
Additionally, an Oxford Free Press analysis of the survey conducted by Miami's site selection committee showed nearly 600 of the over 1,500 respondents preferred a southwest quad site near the corner of Spring Street and Oak Street on campus over the Cook Field site, which just over 250 respondents preferred. Two-hundred and fifty more respondents preferred renovating Millett.
No students were part of the site selection committee.
In contrast, members of the Board of Trustees expressed support for the proposed site and the entire construction project. The trustees approved the site location, allowing the project to move to the initial concept and design phase.
The trustees have not yet approved the actual construction of the arena and there is currently no timetable for when the new arena could be built.
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