By Foster Nicholas | Sports Writer
With the final full season at the Ferrell Center a thing of the past, all eyes are on the soon-to-be-finished Paul and Alejandra Foster Pavilion.
In December 2021, Baylor and the City of Waco announced the plan to construct a brand new arena along the Brazos River on the west side of I-35. With just over a year of construction already underway, the Pavilion is on track to be completed in January 2024.
The 245,000-square-foot Foster Pavilion will provide seating for 7,000 fans and additional standing room for 500 fans compared to the about 10,300 seats available at the 150,000-square-foot Ferrell Center. While the new arena will have fewer seats, the smaller number will ensure the pavilion is always packed for games and will allow for a louder environment.
Mack Rhoades, Baylor’s vice president and director of intercollegiate athletics, was instantly excited to share the plans with fans and rivals alike. The brand new home of Baylor basketball looks to give the two programs one of the best home court advantages in all of college athletics nationwide.
“Fans will be right on top of the action,” Rhoades said after announcing the project. “We believe it’s the perfect size for us and believe it provides us the opportunity to fill it to capacity every game, both men and women. From a capacity standpoint, there’s certainly facilities that we can compare it to, but in terms of setting, being able to place [the pavilion] right on the river, that’s something that really can’t be replicated.”
As Baylor and the City of Waco continue to work together to build on the foundations of downtown, they hope the finalized product will become a Central Texas staple.
“In terms of the new development for downtown, think about the basketball games and other events and then what’s currently being constructed: retail, housing, office space, new hotels, parking garages, redevelopment of the Riverfront walkway, farmers market, new restaurants,” Rhoades said after plans were released. “[It] serves as the core to all of that activation and growing downtown Waco and just making it a place of destination for the community of Waco and beyond Waco.”
The new riverfront home of the Bears has continued to gain traction. In the past month, Baylor received a $3.7 million donation towards the Jay and Jenny Allison Development Center that will be attached to the Pavilion. The center will be the everyday home of the basketball teams, providing training facilities, practice courts, conditioning and treatment facilities and much more.
While the green and gold awaits its new home, it’ll be fighting it out in the Big Dance and looking to hang a fresh banner in the Foster Pavilion’s grand opening. Not to worry, the Ferrell Center will still be the home of Baylor volleyball and the No.1 acrobatics and tumbling.
