James A. Rhodes Arena - Misplaced Pages

Arena at the University of Akron

James A. Rhodes Arena
Construction
"The JAR"

James A. Rhodes ArenaLocation in OhioLocation in United StatesShow map of OhioJames A. Rhodes ArenaJames A. Rhodes Arena (the United States)Show map of the United States
Location	373 Carroll Street Akron, Ohio 44303
Owner	University of Akron
Operator	University of Akron
Capacity	5,500
Surface	Hardwood
Broke ground	March 8, 1982
Opened	December 3, 1983
Construction cost	$12.5 million ($36.7 million in 2023 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)

James A. Rhodes Arena, nicknamed "The JAR", is an arena in Akron, Ohio, United States, on the campus of the University of Akron. Named for former Ohio governor Jim Rhodes, the arena opened in 1983 and is home to the Akron Zips men's and women's basketball teams and women's volleyball team. It was built next to and replaced the university's 3,000-seat Memorial Hall.

History

The new facility was six years in the making. In 1977, the Ohio General Assembly appropriated $8 million to build a 10,000-seat building over the next two years. But by October 1978, when preliminary plans for the new complex were presented and accepted by the Ohio Board of Regents, the cost of construction had risen to $12.5 million. So the University scrapped the original design in favor of a scaled-down version: a 125,538-square-foot (11,662.9 m) building, including an 18,000-square-foot (1,700 m) wood floor, designed by architect Thomas T. K. Zung. The University Board of Trustees approved the new version in July 1981, and ground was broken on March 8, 1982.

The building opened on December 3, 1983. The building sits on the eastern edge of campus, on the northeast corner of Union and Carroll streets, on a site that once served Fire Station No. 5 and a parking lot.

The JAR hosted the Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball tournament in 1986.

In 2002, renovations included a new hardwood floor, four Opto Tech LED displays screen above the game floor, and a $1.1 million sound system. The new system, built under the guidance of the University Athletic audio engineers, replaced a distributed horn-powered PA system with very narrow dispersion angles, coupled with near-proximity coaxial speakers for the upper deck. This setup led to several hot zones and many fans wondering what the announcer said. That changed in 2005 with the installation of a fully zoned system employing EVH-model horn-loaded boxes coupled with six TX Series subwoofers in the South catwalk for the tipoff "Thunderstruck" kick. A separate zone was also included for the floor for the UA Dance Team and Basketball team warmups. Precision series EV combined amplifiers and DSPs tune the system. A Midas Venice series mixing console along with several channels of external dynamic channel processing, as well as better hyperspheric modulation accelerators, handle all audio inputs. The system has reached a 115 dB during games, and is rated up to 130 dB. Over the years, the dedication to auditory excellence of the University's audio engineers has never wavered as they ushered in a new era of high fidelity with several upgrades, bringing the UA fan experience into the digital age. Five hyper-spheric modulation repeaters were added to bridge the gap. UA fans will now enjoy data-optimized audio experiences bringing a personalized, mobile audio experience to every fan. The facility seats 5,500 people on two floors. In addition to the court, the first level features locker rooms, a sports medicine and training facility, a ticket office, a fan team shop and meeting rooms.

During the early 2000s, when LeBron James played on the boys basketball team from nearby St. Vincent - St. Mary High School, some home games were played at the JAR, where they typically outdrew the Zips' men's games.

The decision to name the arena after former governor Rhodes was highly controversial; he ordered the Ohio National Guard to nearby Kent State University before the May 4, 1970 shootings. Because of anticipated protests, the dedication of the building was not publicly announced in advance.

References

1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.
^ "JAR Arena". Archived from the original on 2007-02-17. Retrieved 2009-02-12.
^ http://www.gozips.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=10800&KEY=&ATCLID=319729
ESPN.com: NCB - Zips try to retake Akron from LeBron

External links

James A Rhodes Arena - Akron Zips

University of Akron

Established: 1870

Academics

Colleges	Buchtel College of Arts and Sciences College of Applied Science and Technology College of Business Administration College of Creative and Professional Arts LeBron James Family Foundation College of Education College of Health and Human Services College of Nursing College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering School of Law School of Music Dr. Gary B. and Pamela S. Williams Honors College University of Akron University College Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics
Campuses	Main campus (Akron, Ohio) Medina County University Center (Medina, Ohio) Wayne College (Orrville, Ohio)
People	President: John Green (interim) Notable alumni Notable faculty and staff

Athletics

Facilities

FirstEnergy Stadium–Cub Cadet Field
InfoCision Stadium–Summa Field
James A. Rhodes Arena
Lee R. Jackson Field
Louis and Freda Stile Athletic Field House
Ocasek Natatorium

Traditions

Football

Basketball

Men	Team Seasons
Women	Team

Soccer

Men	Team In the MLS draft

Student life

Residence halls	Bulger Hall Exchange Street Galluci Hall Garson Hall Grant Hall Honors Complex Orr Hall Quaker Square Ritchie Hall Sisler-McFawn Spanton Hall Townhouses
Student organizations	The Buchtelite Tel-Buch WZIP ZTV Residence Hall Program Board Zips Programming Network University of Akron Press
Other	Expansion Spicertown

v t e Akron Zips men's basketball
Venues	Crouse Gymnasium (1902–1920s) Akron Armory (1920s–1954) Memorial Hall (1954–1983) James A. Rhodes Arena (1983–present)
Culture & lore	Zippy
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1901–02 1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25

v t e Akron Zips women's basketball
Venues	Memorial Hall (1974–1983) James A. Rhodes Arena (1983–present)
People	Head coaches
Seasons	List of seasons 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25

v t e Basketball arenas of the Mid-American Conference
Current arenas	Rhodes Arena (Akron) Worthen Arena (Ball State) Stroh Center (Bowling Green) Alumni Arena (Buffalo) McGuirk Arena (Central Michigan) George Gervin GameAbove Center (Eastern Michigan) Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center (Kent State) Millett Hall (Miami) Convocation Center (Northern Illinois) Convocation Center (Ohio) Savage Arena (Toledo) University Arena (Western Michigan)
Future arena	Mullins Center (UMass, joining in 2025)

Basketball arenas of the Mid-American Conference

Current arenas

Rhodes Arena (Akron)
Worthen Arena (Ball State)
Stroh Center (Bowling Green)
Alumni Arena (Buffalo)
McGuirk Arena (Central Michigan)
George Gervin GameAbove Center (Eastern Michigan)
Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center (Kent State)
Millett Hall (Miami)
Convocation Center (Northern Illinois)
Convocation Center (Ohio)
Savage Arena (Toledo)
University Arena (Western Michigan)

Future arena

Mullins Center (UMass, joining in 2025)

41°4′33″N 81°30′31″W / 41.07583°N 81.50861°W / 41.07583; -81.50861

Categories:

History

See also

References

External links