ASU to begin construction on multi-purpose arena in January

The Arizona State athletics department got the green light on Wednesday to start construction on the school’s $115 million new multi-purpose arena in January.

The 5,000-seat arena, which will be located south of Rio Salado Parkway on the east side of Packard Drive, will host the school’s men’s hockey and wrestling teams, and women’s gymnastics program.

The arena will house an adjacent community hockey rink and will also host concerts, conferences and other events, according to a university press release.

The new facility will have 20 luxury suites, two group suites, a large club lounge and event-level club suites that are capable of holding upwards of 500 fans in total.

There will also be a 942-seat student section taking up the west side of the arena, which will create a one-of-a-kind experience for athletes and fans alike, according to vice president for university athletics Ray Anderson.

“This venue will not only provide an elite student-athlete experience, but will be an asset to our community and continue to bring life to the Novus Innovation Corridor,” Anderson said in the release. “There has been so much work done behind the scenes to get to this point, and we look forward to debuting it to our fans and the local community.”

One of the main features of the new arena is an 8,000 square-foot locker room, weight room, lounge and coaches’ office, with eight additional locker rooms for visiting teams, as well as the university’s club program.

Construction on the facility will start on Jan. 21, along the Novus Innovation Corridor.

The corridor is a 355-acre development that includes 10 million square feet of mixed-use development between the campus and Tempe Town Lake.

The project is scheduled to be completed by December 2022.

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