Xavier University (XU) is investing US$25m in a seven-year project to revamp its Cintas Center basketball arena with a renovated club lounge area, a new hospitality area for spectators and an upgraded wi-fi system.
“It’s such a great environment,” said Xavier athletic director Greg Christopher. “We didn’t want to move the team out for a year, so we’ll take small bites. Our hope is that every year for the next seven years when fans come back for basketball they’ll see something new.”
XU has devised a list of changes and upgrades to its 10,250-seat on-campus arena that aim to improve student-athletes’ facilities and the fan experience. This is the first major renovation of Cintas Center since it opened in 2000.
XU plans to revamp the Joseph Club (above), an area behind the south basket that’s open to about 1,400 fans to eat, drink and sit at tables to socialize during games. It will remove the glass that separates that area from the court and make it a more open space. The club holds 200 fans at a time.
It also plans to add other hospitality areas, including a club for ticketholders of new courtside seats that it has added in the last two years. XU will also add more courtside seats this season, as well as cupholders, which the arena currently lacks, in addition to a new roof, wi-fi system upgrade and high-definition TV systems.
The first part of the project will see XU build a new strength and conditioning facility by expanding Cintas Center to the north. This will double the weight room space and expand its sports medicine facility into the old weight room space, tripling the area it has to treat athletes’ injuries. An academic center that combines student-athletes’ tutoring, study halls and academic offices in one location is also planned.
The changes as part of this initial part of the project will take place this summer and take 12-18 months to complete before XU begins working on the fan amenities.
XU is financing the project through private donations, with US$15m already committed. The university is working with Rossetti and the MSA Sport division of MSA Architects in Cincinnati.
June 5, 2015
