First of all, forget about those rumors that John Paul Jones Arena will be ready for the 2005-06 basketball season – a year ahead of schedule. “There’s no chance,” said Bob Moje, the principal architect working on the mammoth project.
The good news, Moje said, is that “the project is right on schedule in terms of construction, which is actually pretty amazing.” Frequent rain hasn’t delayed work or affected the timetable, so the Cavaliers should be able to move into their state-of-the-art facility by the summer of 2006.
On Wednesday, Moje gave me and Mike Ingalls a guided tour of the construction site, which is bustling with activity. Already, plenty of progress has been made since the official groundbreaking last May 30.
Not bad. But the “single most difficult construction challenge” still remains, Moje said. “Putting the roof on this thing.”
That phase, scheduled to begin in October, will require two of the largest cranes in the world, plus some tricky construction work in connecting the gigantic steel trusses, which are currently being built in Texas. If all goes well, the roof will be in place by early next year.
So why can’t the facility be ready for the 2005-06 season?
“People look at it now and think, ‘What can go on for two more years?’” Moje said. The answer: A lot. “Once the roof is done, it will take a year to finish the inside of it. I don’t think it’s any secret that the technology inside the arena will be phenomenal.”
Indeed, the venue will have high-tech video displays, 15,000 seats, 19 suites, a weight room, a training room, two practice courts, luxury locker rooms and offices for the men’s and women’s basketball coaches.
The building is designed to measure 98 feet (about eight stories) from floor to ceiling and encompass 365,915 square feet. There are Jefferson-inspired architectural features, thanks to Moje’s company, VMDO Architects, which also handled the designs for Klockner Stadium and Davenport Field as well as the renovation of Scott Stadium. There will be 26 exterior Jeffersonian columns with pergolas. Inside, the seating arrangement is expected to create an intimidating atmosphere, with the lower-level seats right next to the court and the upper-level seats and suites hovering close to the court instead of far-removed.
Money? Oh yeah, that’s still an issue. The project is budgeted for $129.8 million, of which more than $84 million has been raised. UVa athletic director Craig Littlepage said recently that it will take “a tremendous effort” to secure the rest of the money, but he is confident it will happen. In the meantime, construction will continue. When it is complete, Littlepage said, Virginia will have “the best college basketball facility in the country.”
To see photos of the construction and artistic renderings of JPJ Arena, please visit this link.
