D1 Hockey at Illinois

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#3      
skyIdub
GET THIS DONE!

It's seriously 20+ years past due.:illinois:
 
#5      
BirdDog9048
Does this conclusion really surprise anyone?

The Chicago-area was a sleeping giant of prep hockey talent. All it took was the Blackhawks being good again, and now we're seeing the impact. It's imperative that we become the first D1 team in the state and establish ourselves with those talent pipelines before someone else does (i.e. Northwestern).
 
#6      
champaignchris
UofI08 said:
Someone is really going to have to explain to me why having the facility off campus makes more sense. It seems counter intuitive. I assume that idea is mostly financially driven, making the city take a significant chunk of responsibility. Student involvement would be greatly affected. I can't see students going off campus for wrestling, volleyball, and hockey, except for some die-hards.
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The proposed downtown arena is closer to where the students live and go to class that the one proposed south of the State Farm Center.
 
#7      
BirdDog9048
UofI08 said:
Someone is really going to have to explain to me why having the facility off campus makes more sense. It seems counter intuitive. I assume that idea is mostly financially driven, making the city take a significant chunk of responsibility. Student involvement would be greatly affected. I can't see students going off campus for wrestling, volleyball, and hockey, except for some die-hards.
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While the downtown site would be further for students to go than the current ice arena and Huff Hall, it is arguably just as close (or closer) a location as the proposed site south of Assembly Hall for many students, and would be surrounded by restaurants/bars rather than out in the middle of nowhere.
 
#8      
FollowTisdale
UofI08 said:
Someone is really going to have to explain to me why having the facility off campus makes more sense. It seems counter intuitive. I assume that idea is mostly financially driven, making the city take a significant chunk of responsibility. Student involvement would be greatly affected. I can't see students going off campus for wrestling, volleyball, and hockey, except for some die-hards.
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It allows Illinois to have a permanent (depending on the sweetheart lease terms) home for hockey without having to put forward the capital to build an on campus arena.

There's no way they were going to raise the money for both hockey scholarships/ equipment/ coaches AS WELL AS a $100MM arena. This option allows a private developer to take the risk on the development part, not the school.

And the Illinois volleyball & wrestling teams wouldn't be moving out of Huff, unless the crowds continue to be too large for Huff (volleyball).
 
#10      
BirdDog9048
FollowTisdale said:
...

And the Illinois volleyball & wrestling teams wouldn't be moving out of Huff, unless the crowds continue to be too large for Huff (volleyball).
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They should though. Huff is extremely outdated, and the facelifts they've been doing for the last decade aren't enough.
 
#11      
ILL in IA
Would the off-campus arena allow for alcohol sales during the games?
 
#12      
UofI08
Thanks for the responses. I had not realized where the on-campus proposal was located.
 
#13      
Deleted member 556108
The downtown three-sheet arena would be amazing. Further connect foot traffic between Campustown/Midtown to Downtown, free up the clogged ice time between Champaign Chiefs and the Illini D1/D2 Club teams (which will be great for the Chiefs youth teams, no more combined practices), and would benefit from increased year-round community usage at the downtown site. And best of all no more Dave Bagger running the show!!!
 
#14      
redwingillini11
The downtown idea is all about the money, but I am still ALL for it. We aren’t getting a $100,000,000 check. If getting this thing built requires investment by the businesses that surround this property, then do it. As was pointed out before, this is no further away from campus than the iHotel site. Plus students will be all about walking across the street into a bar after the game rather than walking 20 minutes in the cold wind from the South Farms just to get back to the 6-pack.

I am getting my hopes up, because this is going to be awesome.
 
#15      
champaignchris
It could be a big boon for the community. Not just the U of I sports and public ice skating, but concerts too big for the Virginia but not big enough for State Farm, maybe minor league hockey or basketball, conventions of various stripes. Plus filling a big empty hole in between campus and downtown.
 
#16      
KrushCow31
ILL in IA said:
Would the off-campus arena allow for alcohol sales during the games?
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The new hockey only facility at Notre Dame sells alcohol only to the fancy people seats where it's kind of like a bar. It's similar to how state farm is set up now. It's restricted access. So it's feasible to do.
 
#17      
UofI
I'm all for this as I love the downtown area of Champaign and this will ensure it continues to flourish and grow. I'm guessing in addition to hockey it will be used for concerts and events. This seems to put it in competition with the State Farm Center. So in that aspect it's a bit surprising the University isn't more interested in owning it.
 
#19      
Joel Goodson
illinidadtime said:
The downtown three-sheet arena would be amazing. Further connect foot traffic between Campustown/Midtown to Downtown, free up the clogged ice time between Champaign Chiefs and the Illini D1/D2 Club teams (which will be great for the Chiefs youth teams, no more combined practices), and would benefit from increased year-round community usage at the downtown site. And best of all no more Dave Bagger running the show!!!
Click to expand...

redwingillini11 said:
The downtown idea is all about the money, but I am still ALL for it. We aren’t getting a $100,000,000 check. If getting this thing built requires investment by the businesses that surround this property, then do it. As was pointed out before, this is no further away from campus than the iHotel site. Plus students will be all about walking across the street into a bar after the game rather than walking 20 minutes in the cold wind from the South Farms just to get back to the 6-pack.

I am getting my hopes up, because this is going to be awesome.
Click to expand...

champaignchris said:
It could be a big boon for the community. Not just the U of I sports and public ice skating, but concerts too big for the Virginia but not big enough for State Farm, maybe minor league hockey or basketball, conventions of various stripes. Plus filling a big empty hole in between campus and downtown.
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+infinity

Really hoping it happens.
 
#20      
ILL in IA
KrushCow31 said:
The new hockey-only facility at Notre Dame sells alcohol only to the fancy people seats where it's kind of like a bar. It's similar to how state farm is set up now. It's restricted access. So it's feasible to do.
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NDs hockey facility is on campus though correct?

I think if this was an off-campus facility, beer could be sold to everyone of legal age.
 
#22      
Vermilion Slim
BirdDog9048 said:
They should though. Huff is extremely outdated, and the facelifts they've been doing for the last decade aren't enough.
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I feel like that is a bit of an exaggeration.

I go to Huff multiple times a year with my family and it is a really easy place to watch events. All the chairs have been replaced with modern seating and it does a great job of mixing a decent comfort level with the history and feel of the old building. The only real issue we've ever had is with parking, but that'll be an issue pretty much everywhere.

I can see them using a new arena for special events or tournaments, but I can't see them not primarily utilizing Huff for most of the volleyball, wrestling, and gymnastics for a long time to come.
 
#23      
Deleted member 649710
UofI08 said:
Someone is really going to have to explain to me why having the facility off campus makes more sense. It seems counter intuitive. I assume that idea is mostly financially driven, making the city take a significant chunk of responsibility. Student involvement would be greatly affected. I can't see students going off campus for wrestling, volleyball, and hockey, except for some die-hards.
Click to expand...

I am going to presume that you haven't been back to Champaign lately. Downtown has become much more of a draw for students than it was in the 90s and earlier. They are proposing to build this basically at the Amtrak station, which is significantly closer to the bulk of student housing/apartments than the other site. The Downtown site is a half-mile closer to Illini Union than the site proposed south of Assembly Hall. If you measure from the middle of the Champaign fraternity/sorority area (3rd and Daniel), its about a 1/3rd mile closer. And Downtown has a LOT of pre/post game restaurant/bar options, while the other site has . . . cows. I think it is smart to expand in this direction.
 
#24      
KrushCow31
ILL in IA said:
NDs hockey facility is on campus though correct?

I think if this was an off-campus facility, beer could be sold to everyone of legal age.
Click to expand...

This is true. It's just on the outskirts of campus. I could see them not wanting to sell to students though. But who knows.
 
#25      
Deleted member 649710
Building the arena in an entertainment district similar to many pro arenas (albeit on a smaller scale) would make for a quite rare atmosphere, distinguishing Illinois from other programs.

Even if a private developer funds the arena, DIA is still going to need a very big donation check to fund the first few years of operations and establish something akin to an endowment, otherwise this (primarily the women's team) will be an ongoing drain on an already strained athletics budget. Don't need $100mm, but probably at least $25mm.

I would love to see this happen, because the state definitely has the talent, and the student body the enthusiasm, to support it.
 
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