The Butler Univ. board of trustees yesterday "approved a timetable for upgrades" to Hinkle Fieldhouse be completed by November '14, according to David Woods of the INDIANAPOLIS STAR. There previously was "no specified target date." The "total cost of the project" is $34M. The fieldhouse beginning in the '14-15 season "will have wider concourses, 5,000 chairbacks, more handicapped seating, handrails and new bathrooms." Capacity will be "about 9,100, less than the current 10,000 but more than previous estimates." Work has begun on the $23M first phase, which "focuses on the 17,700-square-foot, three-story space on the site of Hinkle’s former natatorium, which hasn’t been used for several years." The basement will "feature a weightroom and the main floor an academic center." The top level will "include coaches’ and administrators’ offices." Butler President James Danko in a statement said that $15.6M of a $16M fund-raising goal for Phase I "has been reached." His statement added Phase II renovations will be "partially self-sustaining since upgrades include the addition of more premium seating." Hinkle's status as a national historic landmark means it "cannot undergo wholesale change" (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 5/21).
