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-> For example, UConn had Populous take a hard look at a nearly total makeover of Gampel. A footbridge would connect the arena to the South Garage across Jim Calhoun Way, a secondary concourse would exist in space currently external to the building and office areas would be leveled in favor of merchandising, beer sales and more. Square footage, currently about 228,000, would increase dramatically. The cost estimate came back at north of $300 million. UConn would be better off building from scratch. <-
-> Perhaps first, or at least up high, on the Gampel to-do list is to replace all lower-level seating that is not permanent, which is most of it. The roll-in, roll-out, bleachers — like the court they have surrounded — are nearing the end of their usable life and new seating must be installed in the next two years.
“We’ll maybe replace them as currently configured,” Benedict said. “Or, could we do some different things? Could we create some premium seating that offers nicer chairs, that are padded, wider, more comfortable? Could you maybe create a second row of floor seats, which we’re completely sold out of now? Could you potentially move students courtside versus being on the ends? Those are all things that we’re talking about.”
-> “We need to try to address our premium offerings, which we have very little of, which means, how do we create some club spaces?” Benedict said. “How do we create better points of sale and options from a concession standpoint? And the biggest thing is how our fans can move in and out and around the building, which is difficult, because we don’t have an outer concourse. So it really clogs things up. We want to be sold out and that creates problems with bathrooms and points of sale and concessions.” <-