Bud Walton Arena has “served us well” as home of the Arkansas Razorback basketball teams since it opened 30 years ago, but it is now “somewhat tired and in need of renovation,” University of Arkansas Athletic Director Hunter Yurachek told the University of Arkansas System board of trustees Tuesday.
During a meeting of the trustees at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Yurachek presented three possible scenarios for renovating the facility that opened in November 1993, but he stressed those are from a “very preliminary feasibility study, [and] are only concepts right now.”
The university will look for an architect and general contractor to work together on design possibilities, Yurachek said. By having the architect work alongside the general contractor, “we’d get an idea of pricing,” as opposed to “the architect designing a building you love but can’t afford.”
Yurachek plans to present an architect and general contractor for approval by the trustees this summer, then — in January or March of 2024 — bring a recommendation with details of the potential renovation to the trustees for approval, he said. Under that timeline, work could begin on the arena in March 2025 with an “ideal” grand opening in November 2026, but “we’d have to be very fortunate to hit all these dates.”
Read Wednesday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for more details.