Thursday, October 2, 1997
NR220864
NEW NMU EVENTS CENTER GETS GREEN LIGHT FROM BOARD OF CONTROL
        MARQUETTE--Northern Michigan University today received approval
from its Board of Control to proceed with the planning and construction of
a $9.5 million Events Center.
        The proposed site for the project is in the vicinity of Memorial
Field, adjacent to the Physical Education Instructional Facility.
Construction is slated to begin in the spring, with completion expected in
August 1999.
        "The center will be paid for with a combination of private
contributions, bond proceeds and general fund support," said Mike Roy, vice
president for finance and administration. "It will offer individual seating
for approximately 4,000 for hockey games and up to 5,000 for other events,
such as concerts and student activities."
        Plans include a concourse level with concessions, office space, 14
viewing suites, a pro shop and restrooms. Steps leading down from the
concourse level will take people to the seating area. There will be a sheet
of Olympic-size ice which can be covered with temporary flooring for other
events.
        "We see nothing but positives coming out of this project," said
Rick Comley, NMU athletic director and hockey coach. "The end result will
be similar to the Superior Dome, in that both the university and community
will benefit from a high-quality, multi-use building. Activities that
traditionally have been held in Hedgcock Fieldhouse - basketball, for
example - could be held here. This would free up Hedgcock for other
development. The long-range plan is to consolidate all of NMU athletics in
one location."
        Comley said the Events Center will serve to upgrade the quality of
NMU's hockey facilities, putting the university on a more competitive level
with its counterparts in the CCHA. The Wildcats should make their debut in
the new center with the first game of the 1999-2000 season. NMU's lease
with Lakeview Arena expires that same year.
        "Lakeview has served us well over the past 21 years," Comley said.
"But this center will give us the flexibility of controlling our own
events. The new ice will also be home to the U.S. Olympic Education
Center's short-track speed skaters, and will be available for NMU
intramural athletics, junior hockey, figure skating and other community
uses."
        "We have been operating inefficiently with two sheets of ice - one
at Lakeview and one on campus," added Roy. "We have been working with the
city for several years trying to come up with the best solution. The new
facility was mutually agreed upon."
        The Events Center will require NMU to support only one rink without
reducing the number of ice sheets available to the community, Roy said. The
Physical Education Instructional Facility, or PEIF, will no longer house a
rink.
        "Hardwood flooring would be installed in its place, creating
additional space for basketball practice and intramural sports," said Roy.
"But the ice-making equipment from the PEIF will be transported to the
Events Center and put to use there."
        In order to proceed with the Events Center and the university's
"number one capital project" - the renovation and expansion of the West
Science Building - NMU sold $17 million in bonds this summer. Preparations
for the West Science project are ongoing, university officials stated, and
efforts are continuing to raise funds for both projects.
 
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