Item: According to university sources, details are in place to present to SU’s Board of Trustees and other top leadership a proposal to replace the Dome roof and renovate the building’s interior, including more segregated club/box seating and utilizing newly constructed space east of the Dome to relieve current congestion.
Although final plans to be presented are still being tweaked and public details have been limited, expect the university board at its regularly scheduled meeting next month to receive a more in depth look and renderings that will illustrate Dome improvement plans commencing as soon as next summer.
It will be done piecemeal, continuing during the summers of 2017 and 2018 with a goal to be completed by the start of the ’18 football season, without disrupting any of the big three sports of football, basketball, and lacrosse, along with previously scheduled events occurring between the September-May academic calendar.
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With the clock ticking down to a couple of years for replacing the current air-supported, Teflon roof which has defined the Syracuse skyline since the original was inflated in the summer of 1980, the decision has been made on a more permanent cover atop the building.
The necessary structural additions to support the new roof, along with maximizing revenue and improving fan comfort by adding more box seating that will be aligned for basketball games, and moving some operational functions that take up much needed Dome interior space, including those of concessions and catering, by utilizing a new building to be constructed where Archbold Gym currently sits on the east side of the Dome.
No details on costs or funding sources have been provided, but what is clear is that the immediate future of showcasing the school’s biggest entertainment events will be in an updated facility that remains adjacent to the Quad and close to the majority of ‘Cuse students, as opposed to a brand new building built off campus.
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