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After back-to-back trips to the NCAA Championship game and one year in the Atlantic-10, Butler will enter the Big East next [academic] year as their historical Hinkle Fieldhouse undergoes a two-phase $34m renovation.
Butler President (and former Dean of Villanova VSB), James Danko, formalized a timetable to the Indy Star noting that the work would be done in November 2014. The ultimate goal of the project is "to retain elements that made the fieldhouse a wonder in the 1920s and include amenities for the 2020s."
Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
What will Butler fans expect to see in the Hinkle v2.0?
- The fieldhouse will have wider concourses, 5,000 chairbacks, more handicapped seating, handrails and new bathrooms.
- Capacity will be about 9,100, less than the current 10,000 but more than previous estimates.
- Phase I ($23m) includes renovation behind the scenes in the former pool area. That 3-floor space will include a weightroom, academic center, and coaches’ and administrators’ offices.
Butler is trying to main the historic past of Hinkle. It has always been an arena destination for college basketball fans to catch a game, a renovation and joining a major conference will only amplify that desire.
What do you think? Do you think Villanova should be undertaking a similar venture with The Pavilion... soon? Does it increase your desire to travel to Indy to catch 'Nova play the Bulldogs?