Kimmel Arena hosting SoCon tourney...

[BornToRun86]

The Southern Conference Basketball Tournament is returning to Asheville in 2012, a move that could create an economic impact as high as $12 million over three years.
SoCon officials and athletic directors on Thursday chose Asheville over five other cities bidding for the event after two days of presentations and negotiations in Hilton Head, S.C.
“We’re excited to have the Southern Conference back,” said City Council member Jan Davis, who was part of the delegation to Hilton Head.
“We had a great run here before but we think it can be even better this time around.”
A 3 p.m. press conference to announce the decision will be held at Thomas Wolfe Auditorium.
The tournament will be played in early March from 2012-14 at the Asheville Civic Center and Kimmel Arena, a new 3,200-seat facility on the UNC Asheville campus.
The event, which was very successful in terms of attendance and revenue when it was held at the Civic Center from 1984-95, now features 23 men’s and women’s teams and 21 games over four days.
“We’re thrilled to be returning to Asheville, a site where the Southern Conference enjoyed some of its most exciting basketball championships,” said Southern Conference Commissioner John Iamarino. “The City of Asheville clearly demonstrated its enthusiasm and commitment to hosting the tournament in its presentation to the membership. We had six outstanding choices available, which illustrates the growing prestige of this event.”
The 2012 men’s tournament will be played at the Civic Center while the women’s tournament will begin at Kimmel Arena. The women’s tournament semifinals and championship game will be played at the Civic Center.
As part of the city’s bid, Asheville's organizing committee has pledged $3.2 million in capital improvements to the Civic Center, which would need to be completed prior to the 2012 tournament.

[uncafan]

OK i get that we need money and its good for the city but WTF??

What happens when we host the Big South tourny? Furthermore why would you (as an athletic department) want to promote another conference? Teams you recruit against? I know as a basketball fan I'm thrilled by the idea that local Asheville kids are going to see WCU playing in OUR beautiful new arena and might be thinking "huh that would be a cool place to go play, and I'd even get to play at home in Asheville for the chance to make the NCAA Tourny." Come on. Can someone give me a compelling reason from history, or financially how we as a school benefit from this? Because on the face of it -- i think its a joke.

[kingaling42]

Maybe you should read the article fully & comprehend the scope of the deal...

Only the women's SoCon tourney will be hosted at Kimmel- the men's SoCon tourney will be held at the Civic Center with the promise of $3+ million in renovations to the CC.. No offense to the ladies but we already lose women players to many SoCon teams & I could care less how this affects them- this should not affect the Men's program at all- in fact, for local fans who don't frequent UNCA events- this should promote the new facility and probably increase interest in UNCA- I can't see how in the world it would deter anyone just because SoCon teams play a 3-4 day tournament there- most recruits of UNCA should already be sold by our coaches that the path to the NCAA tourney should go through Kimmel with them as a Bulldog..

Aside from that the Big South & SoCon tourney's have been held in separate weeks in most years as well at least so far as the Men's tourney's are concerned- so if our teams are both the #1 seed this still should not be a scheduling conflict.. I'm sure that the SoCon is smart enough to schedule their tourney's in opposite weeks from the Big South tourney's..

Any exposure that UNCA & Kimmel were to receive out this deal is a good thing IMO.. I really don't see how it hurts UNCA with SoCon women playing in our place.. If it were the Men, I might have a problem with it as well, since Kimmel isn't going to be big enough for the SoCon Men's draw who really cares since that event will be downtown..

[GoUNCA]

King's right. It's hard to see anything other than us profiting from the deal.

I wouldn't go to the SoCon tourney games anyway, but we might as well bring people from out of town to Asheville. I'm not too hot on the idea that the Civic Center just gets a band-aid because it needs a lot more than that.

[kingaling42]

... I'm not too hot on the idea that the Civic Center just gets a band-aid because it needs a lot more than that.

It needs a few sticks of dynamite & a wrecking ball.. The only real solution is imploding that building & rebuilding with a concentration on parking options kept in mind- or a change in location which is probably the best alternative.. the current location is a clusterfuck in various ways whenever decent events are being hosted there..

Like much of Asheville, it was not designed for growth..