The ongoing renovations to Yardmen Arena should be finished this fall, allowing for the Belleville Senators to occupy the facility later this year.
Last year, the Ottawa Senators announced that they would shift their AHL affiliate–the Binghamton Senators–to Belleville, ON for the 2017-18 season. In order to accommodate the Senators, Belleville is undertaking an extensive modernization and expansion of Yardmen Arena.
That project will expand Yardmen Arena to seat at least 4,400 spectators, while modernizing fan and player amenities. The facility is slated to be ready for occupancy by November 1 and, in a recent update, project officials believe that the deadline can be met. More from the Daily Commercial News:
[City project director Mark Fluhrer] said the city is confident at this juncture “and becoming even more confident as each day passes” that the project will in fact be completed on schedule.
“Key milestones are being met,” Fluhrer said. “And things are moving along very quickly. Architecture49 had a head start and Ball is doing a great job keeping on top of the schedule.”
Ball vice-president and estimating manager Gary Hauck said typically 75 per cent of his company’s annual volume is performed under a CM at-risk process.
He said the biggest challenge on the Belleville arena expansion and renovation project is the schedule.
“As a team, we cannot be late for the upcoming hockey season,” he explained.
Yardmen Arena originally opened in 1978. The Senators will be the venue’s first hockey tenant since the Ontario Hockey League’s Belleville Bulls, who moved to Hamilton after the 2014-15 season.
