Since 2006, the Virginia Cavaliers basketball teams have called the John Paul Jones arena their home. VMDO collaborated with Ellerbe Becket (now part of AECOM) to design a 15,000-seat multipurpose arena that gives the Cavaliers a palpable home-court advantage. In addition to hosting men’s and women’s basketball competitions, the arena hosts concerts, lectures, and touring shows.

The arena’s exterior palette respects the architectural vernacular on Grounds with red brick facades and white accents. The unique horseshoe-shaped seating bowl leaves one end of the upper deck open, allowing views outside to the larger campus context. Retractable seats in the lower portion of the seating bowl make space for demountable stage platforms and floor seating for concerts and lectures. Practice facilities for both men’s and women’s teams allow athletes to practice even when the main arena is hosting an event. Weight training facilities, a training room, coaches’ offices, and locker rooms support student athletic development and team building.

In addition to the arena itself, the project addresses many site issues. Structured and surface parking for 1,500 vehicles provide convenient parking for spectators, and an entry road connects the athletics precinct to the Virginia highway system. The design also illustrates how storm water moves through both man-made portions of Grounds and the natural landscape through the restoration of Meadow Creek. Previously routed through underground piping, the landscape now celebrates this important component of the University’s primary watershed.