Kansas basketball coach Bill Self didn’t mince words when talking about his love for Allen Fieldhouse.
“I can’t say Allen Fieldhouse is the greatest place ever because I haven’t been everywhere else, but it’s the greatest place I’ve ever been,” Self said at a press conference last week.
In March, KU provided details on Allen Fieldhouse’s upcoming renovations. The renovations include additional chair-back seating, new video boards and a modernized sound system.
Kansas also plans to revamp its concourses on all three levels.
Those concourse upgrades will include “expanded donor space throughout the venue that will increase capacity, provide a world-class gameday experience, and allow for additional opportunities for special events on non-gamedays,” according to a KU release.
Jayhawk fans should enter a modernized Allen Fieldhouse by the 2024-25 basketball season.
“We will get 40-50% of it done this summer,” Self said. “The following 50-60% of it will be next summer. So, we are 18 months away from feeling the full impact of Allen Fieldhouse.”
Kansas athletic director Travis Goff spoke to The Star in February about Kansas’ primary focus when renovating the historic venue.
“We made sure we are looking at it from ... a 2030, 2040 kind of lens, if you will,” Goff said. “What should be the future of Allen Fieldhouse if you fast-forward 20, 25, 30 years down the road?”
“I think that’s exciting to think about. ... The challenge and the opportunity, of course, is how do we retain the incredible character, history and tradition of Allen Fieldhouse while making it a better fan experience? I am confident we are going to find the right balance there.”
Self believes they’ve found the balance between modernization and preserving the venue’s history.
“The fan experience is going to be off the charts for a building that’s almost 70 years old; you have the modern amenities of a building that we just opened,” Self said. “It’s going to be fantastic.”
Ultimately, the Allen Fieldhouse renovations are just one part of what helps KU recruit players to play for the Jayhawks.
“When you look at practice facilities, when you look at housing … (and) when you look at the arena, which is so special and we’re not going to take anything away from what it feels like to play there,” Self said. “‘When you say, ‘What do we need to be successful?’ We got it.
“In the past, when you’d ask me, ‘What do we need to be successful?’ Well, we need to get this, this, this done. So, I feel as good about it as I ever have.”
