Bankers Life Renovations Taking Shape
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe University of Kansas and the University of Kentucky are set to square off December 1 in a game that will mark the debut of the newly-renovated Bankers Life Fieldhouse in downtown Indianapolis. The $362 million improvement project of the 21-year-old facility began in February and includes a $4.3 million scoreboard and new lower level seating, with future plans for refurbished club seating and suites, renovated upper levels and additional club seating areas. Mel Raines, executive vice president at Pacers Sports & Entertainment Inc., says an upcoming series of college basketball games will serve as a dry run for the updated facility.
Raines talked about the renovations with Inside INdiana Sports Host Bill Benner.
“We’ve been working with the Marion County Health Department and the state for many months on our reopening protocols,” said Raines. “These games will not have fans in them, but it’s certainly is a good opportunity for us. We haven’t had an event since the men’s Big Ten tournament stopped playing March and so we want to be sure that we’re up and running by the time we have Pacers season going and these are exciting games for us to host.”
The renovations are taking place in phases, moving from the bottom of the facility up and then outside. Raines says crews have replaced all of the seats on the lower level, with more to be replaced over the next couple of years as renovations move up.
The new scoreboard has two LED rings on the top and bottom, while the main screens are at a larger size of 50 feet by 20 feet. Plus, a new underbelly screen has been installed for fans on the lower level.
Additionally, Raines says the practice court at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, which had been on the event level, has been moved up a level to create more operational space and provides access to the practice court directly from Delaware Street.
Raines says crews are getting ready for the next phase of renovations.
“Summer of ’21, we’ll be tackling the entry pavilion, starting the work in the plaza to the north of the building and the main concourse and club levels,” said Raines. “And then in the summer of ’22, we’ll be tackling the balcony and in between, we will have some ‘Pardon Our Dust’ phases…on the concourses. They won’t affect our ability to host events and fans in the way we always have, but things will look a little bit different when we’re working our way around the concourses.”
Plans for the renovations were approved in April 2019 when Pacers Sports & Entertainment and the Capital Improvement Board agreed to a long-term deal to keep the Pacers and Indiana Fever in Indiana. At the time, CIB President Melina Kennedy said, in addition to improving the regular events hosted at the fieldhouse, the renovations would help the city attract more conventions annually.