Arkansas Sports 360 - ArkansasSports360.com

10/18/2011 at 11:30am

Image by UA Media Relations

An artist rendering of a proposed club and suite seating in the north end zone of Razorback Stadium.

Arkansas unveiled a long-term vision for athletic facilities on Tuesday. The projects — expected to impact all sports — could take up to 30 years to complete at an initial esitmate of $320 million.

Major projects include the addition of club seating in the north end zone of Razorback Stadium, a basketball practice facility, an academic and dining area for all atheltes and upgrades to all existing athletic facilities. Also proposed is a sidewalk system connecting facilities on campus and detailing Razorback athletic history.

There is no definitive timeline for building or fund raising any of the proposals. None of the projects have received Board of Trustees approval.

"It is a very ambitious plan," Athletic Director Jeff Long said. "It’s a wishlist for the future of our program. … Really, the timeline is determined as we move forward. It’s a long-term vision, one played out for years to come."

All facilities are set for some sort of upgrade. We’ll hit the highpoints here:

Basketball Practice Facility
Notable: Includes two full courts, weight room, a museum and training. Located in field south of Bud Walton Arena. 

Academic/Dining Center
Notable: Includes auditorium for athlete meetings, study areas, a dining facility for training table meals in all sports. 

Track/Baseball
Notable: Combined track throwing area and indoor practice facility for baseball. 

Reynolds Razorback Stadium/Broyles Complex
Notable: North end zone expansion, focused on suite and club seating. Team would continue game day entrance from Broyles Complex and like Cowboys Stadium walk through field-level seating to get to field. Would expand stadium by 5,000 seats.

Baum Stadium
Notable: Additional club seating in left and right fields, a center field entrance and concourse that allows for “360 degree” access around the stadium. Would add about 44 new suites to the stadium.

Bud Walton Arena
Notable: Expanded concourse. Retrofitted for concerts and events (which could be held in Walton once it’s no longer used for practice).

5,000-seat Competition Venue
Notable: Goodbye, Barnhill Arena. At nearly 60 years old the cost for upkeep and update is too much. It’s cheaper to build a new facility to house gymnastics and volleyball.

Razorback Walk
Notable: Similar to the sidewalks connecting campus to detail names of graduates, an athletic walk is envisioned to connect athletic facilities and memorialize Arkansas greats. More importantly the administration sees it as a way to eliminate foot traffic on Razorback road during gamedays.

Tagged: Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium, Arkansas Razorbacks, Bobby Petrino, Bud Walton Arena