ORONO – The $45 million renovation to the University of Maine’s Alfond Arena is well underway.
Jacob Olsen, the assistant director for capital planning and project management for the University of Maine system, said everything is on schedule and the project should be completed by the end of 2025.
The renovation is part of a $170 million gift to the university by the Harold Alfond Foundation for the improvement of the school’s athletic facilities. The plan includes maintaining a balance between the ambiance and energized environment of the 47-year-old arena and the numerous improvements for players and fans.
Olsen took the media on a tour of the construction site on Wednesday.
Olsen said a lot of progress has been made since UMaine’s commencement in May and there haven’t been any major problems.
“There was some ledge but we planned for it and its removal was included in the budget,” said Olsen. “So there are no concerns about things coming out of the ground from a construction standpoint.”
He said the next step will occur soon after Labor Day.
“They are going to pour the slab and you will see steel erected throughout the fall months. The goal is by winter time to have it closed in and weather-tight,” Olsen said.
There will be a 13,000-square foot addition to the Shawn Walsh Hockey Center that will include expanded locker rooms for the men’s and women’s hockey teams, upgraded strength and conditioning facilities, film rooms, recovery rooms, kitchenettes, team offices and team lounges along with nutritional areas.
He said the facilities will be “identical” for the men’s and women’s hockey programs.
There will also be new locker rooms for visiting teams and they will be able to access them right after they get off the bus without having to mingle with UMaine players and staff, according to Olsen.
There will be a 4,900-square foot addition which will include a new entrance, upgraded concourse and concession stands along with a first aid station.
In addition, a 5,000-square foot renovation to Alfond Arena is going to be part of the upgrade.
Olsen said one of the small items includes moving the stairs back in order to give the flow of fans three more feet of walking space during games.
The Bear Necessities Fan Shop where people can purchase UMaine merchandise will also be improved.
“It will be very visible from the outside so fans can go in even when there isn’t an event going on, like the way it is now,” said Olsen.
The Hall of Fame room will also get a facelift.
The Alfond Arena project comes at a time when the men’s hockey team has begun an ascension to the upper tier of college hockey.
This past year’s team went 23-12-2 under third-year head coach Ben Barr and earned the program’s first trip to the Hockey East semifinals and berth in the NCAA tournament since the 2011-12 season.
Under Barr, UMaine has improved by eight wins each season.
UMaine, which put its first team on the ice as a Division II program in the 1977-78 season before moving to Division I two years later, has won NCAA championships in 1993 and 1999 and earned 19 NCAA tournament berths and 11 Frozen Four appearances.
“The timing has been wonderful. We couldn’t have picked a better time in that regard,” said UMaine athletic director Jude Killy. “We don’t have to have the number one-ranked facility in the country but lifting up our storied program in a way that is meaningful in today’s world is a really important piece.”
Killy expressed appreciation for the Harold Alfond Foundation’s support, noting that the project will enable the facility to keep pace with the high level of competition.
Killy said he was “super excited” for the student-athletes and said the renovations will help recruiting.
“Our student-athletes come here to get a high-caliber education and to compete at the highest level: Division I. And they want to win. The good news is this will be an additional reason to come to the University of Maine,” said Killy.
The fans have already been treated to a new high-definition, center ice-hung scoreboard, additional LED end zone displays along with an LED ribbon board.
And the lighting system inside the arena has been upgraded in recent months.
This coming season will have its challenges with fans negotiating the construction and fewer parking spaces.
“That’s the pain of progress,” said Killy. ““We’re not looking at the next three or six months, we’re looking at the next 50 years.”
The men’s and women’s hockey teams will continue to use their current locker rooms and weight-training facility until after the season ends when work on the new locker rooms and other facilities will begin.
“We wanted to make sure their season isn’t disrupted from their normal day-to-day routine. And we wanted to make sure the fans can come to Alfond Arena rather than another venue,” said Killy.
