New Miami Arena Rumor

That is what the article seems to imply. They were going to do one in 2022 but then they decided not to spend the money. I believe the word you are searching for Jive is “half-assed”.

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The arena needs to be built on Cook Field. There is room, easy access from 73 and 27, close to dorms, etc… The idea of putting an arena by the slant walk or on Lewis Place because its going to attract students to come to games and not go drink is idiotic. Anyone that truly believes that an arena near uptown in either of those two spots is going to solve attendance problems is mistaken. We need an arena that is easily accessible to out of town people coming in and easy for them to park.

There should be enough room for a hotel and an arena at that spot, with parking to serve both facilities.

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The Cook Field location is so obvious it should not even be debatable.

The recommendation is to build a hotel, conference center and dining on Cook Field because of its central location and easy access to Routes 73 and 27?

Add the arena and a bistro to the complex and you have created a destination that can compete with uptown for student interest.

Plenty of real estate in front of and to the side of Millett to create intramural fields where they should be located closer to other athletic fields.

If there ever was a no brainer this is it.

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I agree with you 100% but I have a theory there are forces in place that actually don’t want a competing location to uptown as they might lose money if say a massive amount of student traffic was diverted.

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Ah, yes.

The answer to most every question…“Follow the money”.

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Went cycling with one of the members of the planning committee again yesterday and he was at the University Senate session. He said the administration is playing “hide the ball” on this by not disclosing all of the details and predicted that the administration is going to go to the mat on the slantwalk site. It appears to be a condition of the donation. He said it will take overwhelming alumni opposition for the administration to get the message that slantwalk is not the appropriate site. This issue is going to the board of trustees next month and, apparently, they are a rubber stamp. There is no process to involve the public. The administration feels it can do whatever it wants.

Are we just going to sit back and allow this to be shoved down our throats?

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High Street can barely handle a class change on a week day. Now they want to put a sports arena in there with zero parking and constant traffic? Ok. Sounds like a peach

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Since there is no parking right there, no need for people to drive by. They would be heading to the parking garages or Millett parking, but there would be fewer people driving and parking and more people walking. That location is very close for most students living off campus and really not that far from the dorms.

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It is absolutely idiotic to ruin our campus in order to build an arena with only a car-centric point of view.

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I’m going to stick my neck out here. Having grown up living in Lewis Place for ten years and returning to make my living in Oxford (and my side hustle with the athletic department) I am very much opposed to locating any new structure in the Slantwalk/Central Campus area of natural beauty. Literally two blocks away is a much better site where Williams Hall/Phillips Hall is located. A facility similar to BG’s Stroh Center would fit easily on that footprint.

I believe if we were to erect an arena in the dead center of uptown Oxford, it would make a very little difference in the number of students who would choose to visit regularly for events. Only an immense improvement in the competitive ability of our teams would attract a sizeable student attendance and we are already seeing such improvements, albeit in the early stages, with scant improvement–possibly even further erosion–in student turnout. I don’t much like the Cook Field site, but it is a huge step up from Slantwalk. I doubt seriously that passing drivers are going to suddenly decide, “Hey, that’s where Miami plays, whattaya say we pull over and take in a game?”

Yager was placed where it is because parking was necessary for the increased projected attendance. Slantwalk has none. I would be extremely disappointed to think the administration would be incapable of finding many impediments to putting a building in such a devastating location.

Millett needs fixing or replacement, I agree. But the planning committee simply must allow for a weighing of ALL the pros and cons, and not, as has been suggested above, commit a travesty in a short-sighted effort to appease a donor.

Hopping down from my soapbox now. Pretend you didn’t see me.

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The most accurate post EVER! :arrow_up:

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I mean……I suppose if we had a massive fan base that had an overwhelming negative opinion, that might change some minds……

Miami has two virtues that make it stand out from competitor institutions. First, the commitment level of the faculty to be teachers first and researchers second.

Second, it is gorgeous. The slant walk location would compromise that. I say that as a regular poster on a sports chat site whoose first love is basketball. Do not build it off of slant walk!

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You don’t want anything car-centric so the answer is to ruin our campus by putting an arena in the most historic area we have across from the President’s home with no easy access other than by foot?

At a minimum, any arena needs access and parking for handicapped individuals and service trucks that bring supplies, equipment and refreshments and the like. By definition, arenas are vehicle centric wherever you put them.

Let’s overwhelm Harrison Hall and Ogden Hall with an arena adjoining them as well while we are at it.

Cook Field is the only sensible option with Williams Hall/ Phillips Hall as a poor second location. It at least has some parking infrastructure close but is not nearly as centrally located to campus student housing as Cook.

You still have the question of where the hotel goes with that option when it could easily be combined with the arena complex.

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Where is the “ Save Slantwalk” organization forming?

Other more colorful name suggestions would be welcome.

I don’t have as strong opinion as many on the location, but would the “slantwalk” location really ruin it? Here is the Stroh center dropped over Belltower, couldn’t they just demo that building and place it here? I assume the architecture and design would make it look much nicer from the exterior than Stroh (Red brick that fits with campus)

I ate a lot of stir fry and spicy chicken sandwiches at Belltower 18 years ago, but I don’t feel like its historically significant (except the actual Belltower which could be integrated into the design of the new arena area).

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I am the author of the JohnnyMac Plan, placing the new arena on the Williams Hall site at the corner of Oak and Spring. I am not in favor of building anything near Slant Walk, as I am also a charter member of “Save Slant Walk!”

The Williams Hall site already has the parking infrastructure in place near Goggin, thereby negating any more car-centric construction.

And, I don’t care about a hotel and certainly don’t want one directly on campus. That seems like the university just wanting a shiny new toy.

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Well, more like the developer than the university because if they put up all the money, they get the revenue. Granted, the economic impact will help the university at large, but still…

One of the alleged reasons or arguments behind placing the arena across from Lewis Place and near Slant Walk, that it will curb student drinking, just seems so contrived its laughable. It’s as if someone is looking for some big moral argument to justify placing an arena where they want regardless of the merits (or lack thereof) of that placement (e.g., parking, traffic flow, etc). I can think of dozens of other ways to curb student drinking that are a lot less expensive. If this however is going to be one of their arguments I’m going to oppose the arena simply on the grounds that the supporters are being dishonest dipshits. Sell the location on some real tangible or demonstrable reasons and merits, not some contrived bullshit.

In addition, placement near Slant Walk violates the tenets of the Tao of JohnnyMac.

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It’s not being “shoved down my throat” any more than any other new building site. If we were talking about a new academic building at that site, there would be little or no opposition.
A fellow alum/frat bro and I attended the bball and fball games last week. We spent time discussing the location of the new arena and looking at various options. While both of us feel that Cook Field is the best spot, we looked at the Slant Walk site and we both agreed that there appears to be sufficient room at that site. My big concern is parking and ingress/egress. As is the case with Millett, the traffic congestion is a headache for those coming in from out of town. With Cook, much of that headache is eliminated. Or at least mitigated.