The city of San Antonio will "need to invest in significant improvements for the 21-year-old Alamodome before it can make a serious run at future championship events," according to W. Scott Bailey of the SAN ANTONIO BUSINESS JOURNAL. The first phase of those improvements "could cost in excess" of $20M. San Antonio "came up empty" in '08 in its bids for the '12-16 Men's Final Fours, then last month "failed to secure" the '17 College Football Championship game. San Antonio Sports President & CEO Russ Bookbinder said that city officials "are working with other local stakeholders to identify basic improvements for the Alamodome that, if addressed, would put San Antonio in a more competitive position to pursue future major sports events." Among the upgrades being discussed are "additional luxury suites, newer digital video display technology, improved locker room facilities and new media/broadcasting support space." City of San Antonio Convention, Sports & Entertainment Facilities Dir Michael Sawaya said, "We recognize that we have to make some improvements to get serious consideration for these events. We are not trying to build an NFL stadium, but we are competing against NFL stadiums." Bookbinder: "I think phase one of what we need (in Alamodome improvements) is in the $20 million to $25 million range in order to meet the NCAA specs" (SAN ANTONIO BUSINESS JOURNAL, 1/10 issue).
