KALAMAZOO, MI –– Kate Achter was adamant that the new $515 million Kalamazoo Event Center was a “point of pride” for Western Michigan University.
“No one in the country is getting this experience,” she said.
WMU’s women’s basketball coach was one of several proud WMU athletics staff that celebrated and spoke glowingly about the future home of several Bronco athletic programs at Friday’s groundbreaking ceremony for the new downtown facility.
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“It’s going to change the way we compete for championships,” said Achter, set to begin her first year as WMU’s women’s hoops coach this winter. “But this will not only be a point of pride in our community, the greater Kalamazoo area, but it will also be a point of pride and standard for what women’s athletics should look like across the country.”
The cutting-edge event center, which will house WMU’s men’s and women’s basketball teams, along with the Broncos’ national championship hockey team and the Kalamazoo Wings ECHL professional hockey team, has been under construction for months and is finally becoming a “dream turned reality” for WMU.
The event center is expected to open in fall 2027.
Western Michigan University athletic director Dan Bartholomae was not shy about the impact the facility will have on Bronco athletics –– it was all part of his vision when he was hired over three years ago.
“In my interview, I told the committee that if I got the job, we would work every single day in pursuit of a vision of comprehensive excellence,” Bartholomae said. “But I also wanted to know about something big that we could dream up together and what the committee thinks is big. A committee member by the name of Bill Johnston shared a vision of a competition venue that could house WMU and create new synergies between the community and the university.
“When I left that interview, I knew that I was going to be surrounded by big picture thinkers and supported by a community that shared in that vision of comprehensive excellence. I cannot think of a greater symbol of that shared vision than what is currently being built directly beneath our feet.”
The 450,000-square-foot building will host 105 athletic events annually and will hold practice spaces for all three WMU athletic programs –– two practice basketball courts and a practice sheet of ice.
The main arena will hold 6,500 for sporting events, too.
“This is not just a competition facility,” Bartholomae said. “It’s a facility that has carefully considered the student athlete experience, providing best in class training and recovery amenities that support peak mental and physical performance, while also providing new programming space for the best student athlete development program in the country in Broncos Empowered. This is an opportunity for us to embrace community connection, break down silos, and seek new partnership strategies at a time when both higher education and divisional athletics is changing. And it’s a statement that we’re going to change with it.
“Our events will become can’t miss entertainment in Southwest Michigan, and it will elevate all 16 of our athletic programs.”
Of those programs, perhaps none are more suited for sustained success than WMU’s national championship hockey team. The Broncos won their first national title in program history last season, and their coach was not shy about the new event center’s future effects.
“I think provides (our players) with the best of the best of training facilities,” Ferschweiler said. “We’re going to recruit athletes with inner drive, so guys that want to be great. And then we’re going to provide them a path to success on and off the ice and through their zero limits on and off the ice, along with facilities to make them better. So, what we’ll do is take any excuse they have away. It’ll provide us with the best training facilities in the country, and I think it’s going to allow them all to chase their dreams in the best possible way.”
In terms of recruiting, the state-of-the-art facility gives Western Michigan a massive draw, coaches said.
“The investment in this event center shows the level of commitment and care that we’re willing to give to our student athletes,” Achter said. “What a selling point that is for people who are choosing potentially a Power 4 school over coming to us. If we can offer you something that allows you to perform at your absolute best, your most confident self, that is immeasurable, in my opinion.”
Not only will each of WMU’s athletic programs will have their own practice courts/ice, but they’ll also have their own home locker rooms, training facilities and academic and nutrition facilities.
That comes courtesy of Greenleaf Trust chairman Bill Johnston, who told WMU athletics staff to “dream big” when drawing up the blueprint to the event center.
“There aren’t many Division-I programs that have an athletic performance center,” he said. “An athletic performance center takes a holistic view of athletes. So, we aren’t just talking about a place to practice. We are talking about a place to practice and prepare for life.”
For WMU men’s hoops coach DJ Stephens, he could not underestimate the importance of what this facility means for the future of his program –– not only for recruiting, but also to give his players an all-around “first-class experience.”
“It can only be offered here and we’re excited to have that and to be able to train next to national championship team, a women’s team that is pursuing championships and a professional team with the K Wings,” Stephens said. “And these guys all aspire to be pros one day and to see that on many different levels, I think is an experience that gives our guys a huge advantage and a unique experience.”