By TOMMY REZAC
St. Joseph Post
The NCAA women's basketball Division II Elite Eight tournament is set to be held at St. Joseph's Civic Arena in both 2023 and 2024, and city officials are making sure the facility will be ready in time.
Built in 1980, Civic Arena is getting some long-awaited renovations. A half-cent sales tax increase approved by St. Joseph voters last August is expected to raise $50-$60 million for the city's parks and recreation facilities before it sunsets in 10 years. About $2.1 million of that will go toward the arena.
Brett Esely, Elite Eight tournament director for 2023-24, and director of the St. Joseph Sports Commission, says the goal over the last year-and-a-half has been to get Civic Arena ready to host the NCAA event, which in turn, will make the arena better equipped to host other things, too.
"When you think about the process over the last 18 months," Esely said, "the goal was to get the facility NCAA basketball ready first, knowing that there's many more events that take place in Civic Arena that are above and beyond basketball. Above and beyond sports."
The major renovations inside Civic include a newly refurbished and repainted floor, which was done locally by Hillyard, Inc. Esely says the next big project on the inside will be replacing the original scoreboard, which does not have video capabilities.
"I think the next major 'wow' for the inside will be the scoreboard," Esely stated. "The current scoreboard is original to the building. It does essentially what you need it do right now - keep time and score. But, think about what you expect to see when you go in a major entertainment or athletic venue."
Esely also said scorers' tables will be added, and those, too will have LED lights so they'll be able to display different advertisements and messages - just like you'd see at any modern arena.
Another big renovation will be new basketball hoops. The current ones are 43 years old, and are also original to the building.
"Think about how many shots and dunks and just general wear and tear those hoops have seen over the course of 43 years," Esely noted. "Knowing that's obviously a vital piece of a basketball game."
Esely says all 3,800 seats will be replaced as well. Three sides of the arena still have their original seating. The west side is the only one that's been renovated in the last 10 years - only because those seats were condemned.
Next year will mark the fifth time that St. Joseph has hosted the NCAA DII women's basketball Elite Eight. The last time was in 2011. While the thought of building a new arena in downtown appeals to some, Esely says taking care of what's already here is the most viable option for now.
"I don't know if a new arena in St. Joe is going to be a reality any time soon," Esely said. "Knowing this is a community that likes to take care of what they have, and knowing the marketability that arena has especially when it comes to small college athletics, these upgrades are vital."
With the Missouri Western women's basketball team fresh off of an Elite Eight appearance in Birmingham this past month, excitement for this event coming back to St. Joseph is palpable.
Whether the Griffons make the Elite Eight at Civic or not, Esely is confident that St. Joseph will treat the event with the right amount of excitement and respect.
"St. Joseph does these events well," Esely said. "They embrace the event, they understand the magnitude and I think the visitors who come to town, they really appreciate the red carpet St. Joseph rolls out, because it's a big deal. The city lets these visitors know that the event's here. That's a big deal for events like this."
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