LOUISVILLE, KY. (WDRB) -- The group tasked with deciding the future of Rupp Arena decided Tuesday to renovate the existing facility and make it the center of downtown Lexington by 2018.
The task force says building a new Rupp Arena doesn't make financial sense. Instead, it wants to spend up to $300 million to overhaul the Lexington Center, including Rupp Arena, the Convention Center, and the area around it.
The plan includes moving the convention center behind Rupp, which the group says would better integrate the arena with downtown.
Completing the project will take several phases over several years, and there's no specific plan for funding it. But the report does offer general guidelines for financing it, involving a mix of local, state, and private funding. It calls for a financing plan to be in place this year.
You can see the entire plan by clicking here.
Late Tuesday, University of Kentucky President Eli Capilouto released a statement saying, "Our position has not changed. Our steadfast focus has been – and will continue to be – the revitalization of our campus core. We have concerns about anything that competes for state dollars with that focus. Revitalizing our campus represents the best way we can honor the Kentucky Promise of ensuring the best possible undergraduate education for the Commonwealth's students and future leaders as well as the kind of research that addresses the state's challenges. As a result, everyone needs to clearly understand the specifics of what the proposed Rupp Arena, Arts and Entertainment District will cost and who would ultimately pay for it."
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