The Lynx were struggling to find a playoff home.
The organization was aware its temporary regular-season home, Xcel Energy Center (in St Paul), wasn’t an option to host its home postseason games this fall while Target Center’s (where they normally play) renovation project wrapped up. Minnesota needed to be able to reserve 13 dates for potential home playoff games, and only two of those dates were open at the X.
So, the second search for a home in as many years began. Chris Wright, the president of the Lynx and Timberwolves, said the franchise started looking at options, which ranged from Mariucci Arena to U.S. Bank Stadium to large college gyms in the metro.
Nothing worked.
“Every building that we looked at, in some way, shape or form, it was problematic to get all of the 13 dates held,” Wright said.
Options were running short, to the point where the Lynx started to look at non-metro locations, such as Mankato and Rochester, as possible options. But the franchise, and owner Glen Taylor, deemed it important to stay in the Twin Cities for the convenience of the players and fans, and also for the brand.
So, the Lynx circled back to an option it crossed off early on — Williams Arena.
The Barn seems like an obvious choice considering it’s a decent-sized basketball arena in Minneapolis. But there’s no air conditioning in the 89-year-old building, which is a big problem. Wright said WNBA bylaws require game facilities have AC.
The Lynx had to get creative. They hired a company called Aggreko, which deals with temporary temperature control equipment, to find a way to cool down Williams Arena. The solution isn’t pretty, but it’s effective.
Per WNBA rules, the Minnesota Lynx had to pay for a temporary air conditioning system to be installed at Williams Arena to be able to host their playoff games at the facility this fall.
If the Lynx advance to the WNBA finals, Wright estimated the entire project could cost around $1 million.
“At this point I’m not sure we will net a great profit from the playoffs, regardless of how deep we go,” Wright said, “but Glen Taylor felt it was the right thing to do for our team and our fans.”
Source: http://www.twincities.com/2017/09/11/now-cooled-williams-arena-ready-to-host-lynxs-playoff-run/
The organization was aware its temporary regular-season home, Xcel Energy Center (in St Paul), wasn’t an option to host its home postseason games this fall while Target Center’s (where they normally play) renovation project wrapped up. Minnesota needed to be able to reserve 13 dates for potential home playoff games, and only two of those dates were open at the X.
So, the second search for a home in as many years began. Chris Wright, the president of the Lynx and Timberwolves, said the franchise started looking at options, which ranged from Mariucci Arena to U.S. Bank Stadium to large college gyms in the metro.
Nothing worked.
“Every building that we looked at, in some way, shape or form, it was problematic to get all of the 13 dates held,” Wright said.
Options were running short, to the point where the Lynx started to look at non-metro locations, such as Mankato and Rochester, as possible options. But the franchise, and owner Glen Taylor, deemed it important to stay in the Twin Cities for the convenience of the players and fans, and also for the brand.
So, the Lynx circled back to an option it crossed off early on — Williams Arena.
The Barn seems like an obvious choice considering it’s a decent-sized basketball arena in Minneapolis. But there’s no air conditioning in the 89-year-old building, which is a big problem. Wright said WNBA bylaws require game facilities have AC.
The Lynx had to get creative. They hired a company called Aggreko, which deals with temporary temperature control equipment, to find a way to cool down Williams Arena. The solution isn’t pretty, but it’s effective.
Per WNBA rules, the Minnesota Lynx had to pay for a temporary air conditioning system to be installed at Williams Arena to be able to host their playoff games at the facility this fall.
If the Lynx advance to the WNBA finals, Wright estimated the entire project could cost around $1 million.
“At this point I’m not sure we will net a great profit from the playoffs, regardless of how deep we go,” Wright said, “but Glen Taylor felt it was the right thing to do for our team and our fans.”
Source: http://www.twincities.com/2017/09/11/now-cooled-williams-arena-ready-to-host-lynxs-playoff-run/
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