James A. Rhodes Arena facts for kids
| "The JAR" | |
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Location in OhioLocation in United States
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| Location | 373 Carroll Street Akron, Ohio 44303 |
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| Owner | University of Akron |
| Operator | University of Akron |
| Capacity | 5,500 |
| Surface | Hardwood |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | March 8, 1982 |
| Opened | December 3, 1983 |
| Construction cost | $12.5 million ($35.2 million in 2022 dollars ) |
| Architect | Thomas T. K. Zung |
| Tenants | |
| Akron Zips (NCAA) Men's basketball (1983–present) Women's basketball (1983–present) Women's volleyball (1984–present) |
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The James A. Rhodes Arena, often called "The JAR," is a sports building located in Akron, Ohio, USA. It's on the campus of the University of Akron. This arena opened in 1983. It was built right next to the old Memorial Hall gymnasium, which had 3,000 seats. The JAR is named after Jim Rhodes, who used to be the governor of Ohio. Today, it's the home court for the Akron Zips men's and women's basketball teams. The women's volleyball team also plays their games here.
Contents
Building the JAR
The idea for a new sports building started in 1977. At first, the plan was to build a very large arena with 10,000 seats. The state of Ohio even set aside $8 million for it.
However, by 1978, the cost to build this big arena went up to $12.5 million. So, the University of Akron decided to make the plans smaller. The new design was for a building about 125,538-square-foot (11,662.9 m2) in size. It would have a large wooden floor, about 18,000-square-foot (1,700 m2). Architect Thomas T. K. Zung created this new design.
The University leaders approved the smaller plan in July 1981. Construction officially began on March 8, 1982. The arena was finished and opened its doors on December 3, 1983. It sits on the east side of the campus, where an old fire station and a parking lot used to be.
Arena Features and Updates
The JAR can hold 5,500 people on two levels. Besides the main court, the first level has:
- Locker rooms for the teams
- A sports medicine area for player care
- A ticket office
- A fan shop with team gear
- Meeting rooms
In 2002, the arena got some cool upgrades. These included a brand new hardwood floor for games. They also added four bright LED display screens above the court. A big improvement was a new sound system, which cost $1.1 million. This new system made sure everyone in the arena could clearly hear the announcers and music. It can get very loud during games, reaching 115 dB!
Memorable Moments
The JAR has hosted many exciting events over the years.
- In 1986, it was the site for the Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball tournament.
- In the early 2000s, a famous basketball player named LeBron James played some of his high school games here. He played for St. Vincent - St. Mary High School, which is nearby. When LeBron's team played at The JAR, they often had more fans than the University of Akron's own men's games!
Naming the Arena
The arena is named after Jim Rhodes, who was the governor of Ohio for many years. The decision to name the building after him was a topic of discussion at the time. Because of this, the official dedication ceremony for the building was not announced to the public beforehand.
Images for kids
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Interior of The JAR during a game in March 2010.
