IU board of trustees agrees to replace Assembly Hall, sets no timetable for project

The IU board of trustees reached an agreement Thursday to replace Assembly Hall when an appropriate time comes.\n“It is the opinion of some people that it is just not the best facility for basketball. If we’re going to have a top-flight program in basketball, we need to have a top-flight facility,” trustee Clarence Boone said.\nAn estimate from HOK Sports, an architecture firm based out of Kansas City, said the total cost for a new arena would be between $130 and $160 million.\nBoone said no timetable was set on the project, because the board feels that IU Athletics has enough projects at present, with the recent groundbreaking for renovations and additions to athletics facilities, as well as all-new facilities, around Memorial Stadium and Assembly Hall. \n“We have other things we have to do right now, and when time allows for us to put forth proper fundraising and planning to do it, the board will look at it then,” he said.\nNo decision has been reached whether Assembly Hall will be replaced or renovated, but the decision is projected to come within the next decade, Boone said.\n“When the appropriate time comes, consideration will be given to what will be done and who will do it,” Boone said.\nRight now, Boone said, it is impossible to fund a renovation or replacement of the 35-year-old facility because attention is on other athletic improvements.\n“You can only do so many things at one time,” he said.