JMU Releases Plans for New Basketball Arena, and They Are Awesome

JMU officially released plans for a new Convocation Center today. You can read all about the project over at JMUconvo.com. Um, wow! That’s really all we can say at this point. The current Convo is, to be kind, a bit of a dump. JMU is planning on replacing it with something that is most definitely not a dump. In fact, plans call for it to be a state of art arena with 8,500 seats, 10 luxury suites, practice facilities, video classrooms, meeting rooms, coaches offices, and new locker rooms. And it will be on campus, situated at the corner of Carrier Drive and University Boulevard (a place referred to as “the woods” when we were in school by the way). In a neat twist, students will actually get good seats in this arena, instead of being relegated to the rafters. In short, this new arena looks like everything the Convo is not.

The entire project is expected to cost $88 million. Which is a lot of money and the main reason JMU is asking for your money. And our money. And everyone else’s money. The school has set a fundraising target of $12 million. Construction will only begin once pledges exceed that target and $3 million is actually secured.

These plans are amazing and the arena would be a huge boost to both the men’s and women’s hoops programs. For years, a legitimate argument could be made that JMU wasn’t throwing its full support behind basketball. An $88 million arena would certainly change that. Obviously, it would be terrific for players, but it would be one heck of an upgrade for fans as well. This thing looks like a home run.