University of Idaho Arena Project Moves to Bid and Construction

MOSCOW, ID – The Idaho State Board of Education (SBOE) has unanimously approved the University of Idaho’s (U of I) request to proceed with the bidding and construction phase of the signature 4,200-capacity Idaho Central Credit Union (ICCU) Arena project. The project will go out for bid and will break ground soon, with building completion expected in the fall of 2021.

University of Idaho Arena

The ICCU Arena will be a showpiece for U of I’s student-athletes, the Vandals, tell the story of Idaho’s heritage, and provide a unique gathering place for generations of Vandals to come. The state-of-the-art arena will provide a teaching facility and the best game atmosphere while also acting as a recruiting showpiece. A practice court will provide attractive and versatile competition space and provide much-needed first-class practice facilities.

The innovative mass-timber construction of the building brought wood industry partners from across the state to the project. These critical partners plan to provide in-kind gifts that may reduce the cost of the building—one that will stand as a stunning example of modern wood construction.

Featured

  • Spaces4Learning Launches 2026 Facilities and Construction Brief Survey

    Spaces4Learning recently launched the 2026 Facilities and Construction Brief Survey, which collects data on the previous year’s K–12 and higher education construction projects nationwide.

  • Q&A: How to Prevent Kitchen Grease Fires in Commercial Kitchens

    School cafeterias and university dining halls serve thousands of meals daily, relying on high-heat equipment like fryers, grills, and ovens. While these operations keep students fed, they also generate significant grease-laden vapors. Without proper controls, this grease becomes a silent fire threat. As a certified exhaust cleaning specialist and business coach who has helped hundreds of institutional facilities achieve NFPA 96 compliance, I emphasize that proactive grease management isn’t optional; it’s a core fire/life safety practice.

  • Dallas ISD Voters Approve $6.2B Bond Package

    Dallas ISD voters have approved a record-setting $6.2-billion bond package that district leaders say will modernize aging campuses, eliminate portable classrooms and reshape learning environments across one of the nation’s largest school systems.

  • Opportunity by Design Framework

    Opportunity by Design

    Educational improvement efforts often focus on curriculum, instruction, assessment, professional development, and intervention systems while treating the physical school building as background. But school design is not a passive backdrop to learning — it is a structural lever for equity.