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There are ample reasons why UNC needs a new basketball arena.
Upgrades to the Smith Center make it one of the best college basketball venues in the country. The four giant horizontal video boards, the new sound system and the continued involvement of the UNC pep band, the Carolina Dance Team and cheerleaders, plus occasional halftime entertainment, are all first class.
The years-old speculation has resurfaced about what to do with the Dean Dome, which opened in 1986 and since then has been plagued by criticism that has nothing to do with the great atmosphere once in your light blue seats.
Only some of the crowd egress problems could be improved with a projected multi-million-dollar renovation. Ideally, an arena that seats 20,000 and has two levels needs lower and upper concourses so attendees can move around easily without getting squished. Having one concourse for that capacity is a major mistake.
Pushing out the walls to widen the concourse could be done for multi-millions and would help crowds getting to their seats, concession stands and rest rooms. But a much larger piece of land would be needed to create better access in and out of the building and solve the unsolvable traffic and parking jams.
Due to its relatively small plot of land, the Smith Center is very cumbersome to enter and, especially, leave when capacity crowds stay until the final buzzer. The few roadways to and from parking lots make getting in and out a permanent problem that even the best traffic planning can’t fix.
At the Duke game, the sheer masses prevented golf carts from shuttling older and handicapped people to/from their cars in distant parking decks. The Chapel Hill Transit buses help, but there are still exits onto narrow walkways and dangerous concrete staircases down to the one main sidewalk on Skipper Bowles Drive.
Construction crews could not dynamite enough rock to have more than a half-round basement. Vehicles cannot go underneath and expansion of locker rooms, media workspaces and storage areas has been a 38-year challenge.
UNC no longer gets help from the state government to operate the Smith Center, and it has been decades since losing major concerts to the PNC Arena in Raleigh and the Greensboro Coliseum, which both sell beer. Carolina now can but does not for basketball even though beer is sold at Kenan Stadium.
And the funding structure has crimped the Rams Club raising money for the best tickets that were sold in perpetuity to inaugural donors with lifetime contracts to buy their seats for their families and offspring. Those agreements could be wiped out or restructured with a new, say, Smith-Williams Center in one of the various locations being discussed.
So talks are again under way. What the plan is remains a mystery.
Featured image via Todd Melet
Art Chansky is a veteran journalist who has written ten books, including best-sellers “Game Changers,” “Blue Bloods,” and “The Dean’s List.” He has contributed to WCHL for decades, having made his first appearance as a student in 1971. His “Sports Notebook” commentary airs daily on the 97.9 The Hill WCHL and his “Art’s Angle” opinion column runs weekly on Chapelboro.Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.
With Big Time College FB and MBB currently in CHAOS … and no clear less chaotic solution on the horizon it might be premature to invest in any multi-million $$$$ construction project.
Disregarding BobLee’s fine point, every so often something needs to change to keep current. I love the Dean Dome, love that it sits right in campus accessible to the student body with just a short walk. As far as I have heard any new venue will be off campus. IMO, sports are for the students, playing or spectating, and “home” games should be played at home. Fix the Dean Dome.
This will be an unpopular opinion, but I wish the team never left Carmichael. Growing up and frequently attending games there, I can tell you that it was a tremendous home court advantage. Yes, it was (and is) substantially smaller than the Smith Center, but the smaller capacity also catered to the student body better and it was always LOUD regardless of the opponent. It is widely regarded that Kansas’ Allen Field house is the best home court in the country – despite what the folks in Durham may think. “The Phog” seats approximately 16,000 whereas Carmichael’s current capacity is just under 7,000. In a perfect world, it would be fantastic if Carmichael were renovated and expanded to accommodate say 15,000 to 17,000 spectators – the majority of whom being the students. I agree with you, Barry, that college sporting events should be about the students first – with them given priority seats. Afterall, what makes the home court advantage is the student body; they inspire the home team and intimidate the visitors. And, if that should also translate into some sway with the officials as well, so be it.
No disagreement from me. I have fond memories of Carmichael myself, but I’m not sure it could be renovated to accommodate enough folks. As a result I believe renovating the Dean Dome is a good idea, but not just to cater to the wealthy* with “club seats”. Make it the best venue in the country for the students. They are why it exists.
*nothing against folks being successful and wealthy