SU announces $118 million in upgrades to its “stadium” (i.e., Carrier Dome)

All kinds of new things coming to Syracuse, as a $118 million investment is revealed to the university’s stadium – otherwise known as the Carrier Dome.

The Carrier Dome is a landmark enclosed stadium on a college campus named after a company that most folks associate with the manufacturing of air conditioners.

So, naturally, there’s just a small ounce of irony in the fact that Syracuse officials disclosed in a press release on Monday that they will pump $118 million into the university’s stadium, and that sizable investment will include – wait for it – “the installation of air conditioning.”

Woo-hoo!

Amazing.

Simply the best.

Better late than never, I guess.

I have to tell you, after I saw SU’s announcement on cuse.com, I absolutely couldn’t wait to read all

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of the hilarity floating around the Web. I found more than a few gems, although I’ll keep them on the sidelines, as this is a family environment here at Inside The Loud House.

Suffice it to say, from my perspective, it’s fairly ridiculous that, all along, the Carrier Dome hasn’t had air conditioning. I mean, couldn’t said company, the Carrier Corporation, supply AC for free, or at least at a discounted rate? Or perhaps that is too much to ask.

By the way, the relatively long Syracuse press release failed to refer to the university’s stadium as the Carrier Dome. Not even once, unless I missed something.

On purpose, ya think?

That’s a safe assumption, friends.

"Commencing in the fall of 2020, visitors to the Carrier Dome, or whatever it’s called at that juncture, will experience a “new fixed roof, a vertically hung scoreboard, state-of-the-art sound and lighting systems, improved accessibility and added Wi-Fi capabilities,” among other improvements, says the SU announcement."

The new roof, whose design honestly looks to me like a track meant for roller coasters, will have a 40-year lifespan, provide for more natural light, and “is more resistant to Central New York weather,” per the release.

That sounds good to me, as I never enjoyed hearing about a blizzard potentially collapsing the Carrier Dome’s roof.

The new scoreboard will get easily viewed from every seat, another plus.

"In all seriousness, this paragraph in the announcement makes me sincerely happy: “As part of the transformation, the University will invest more than $6 million in comprehensive Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)-related accessibility upgrades. Among the improvements being made are a new accessible entrance, updating the current elevator to be ADA-compliant, five ADA electric door operators, the installation of closed captioning software and the addition of accessible seating, as well as other accessibility updates.”"

RIP Carrier Dome bathroom troughs (5 things we learned from Syracuse's press conference on the Dome renovations). https://t.co/i3mZKy7eqX
— chris carlson (@ccarlsononSU) May 14, 2018

By the fall of 2022, the Carrier Dome will have air conditioning in place, as well as additional accessibility enhancements, new concession spaces, and new restrooms.

Syracuse.com is reporting that those fantastic troughs in the restrooms will eventually go away. Thank gosh, as nothing proved more lovely to me, when I attended SU years ago, than using the bathroom in such an unbelievably public manner!

Haha.

Work on a “significant” portion of the stadium’s renovations plan to begin this summer, according to the announcement, although the ‘Cuse’s athletic director, John Wildhack, says in the press release that “the University will work closely with our department to limit disruption to our home athletic events.”

Phew.

I feared that head coach Jim Boeheim and his players on the Orange hoops outfit might have to resurrect Manley Field House.

"Added Wildhack: “As the only stadium in the country that is home to five sports, including two women’s sports, this transformation is really a game-changer for Syracuse University athletics. The transformed facility will afford our coaches and athletics staff the tools necessary to continue attracting student-athletes who perform as well in their academics as they do in their respective sports.”"

JB, meanwhile, noted in the announcement that these enhancements “will solidify our home court’s reputation as one of the top venues in college basketball.”

Boeheim is correct. The Carrier Dome is surely iconic, for decades hosting massive crowds for SU basketball games, among other sports. But the facility itself is badly outdated. The upgrades unveiled by the university on Monday are a step in the right direction.

Next: Syracuse Football: Ranking every SU first round pick in NFL Draft history

Now, we just need a new name. I vote for the Dinosaur BBQ Dome, or Wegmans Field. What say you?

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