I saw someone mention that on Twitter. Very interesting.

A welcome center with ample parking would be a great addition to the university. For a firsts time visitor, it's tough to find your way around campus. It would also be an opportunity to provide appropriate signage for campus events. Perhaps enhanced lighting could be added on/around the Convo. On game nights, other than seeing people walking up the ramps, it's hard to tell that there is even a game that evening.

Even adding a lighted sign would make a lot of sense. It wouldn't have to be just for Ohio Athletics in The Convo either. For orientation weekends it could be used to provide directions, and so forth.

I'm not sure there's anything they can do with it. It's below the flood plain level, and from what little I know, the feds won't allow for building anything in that kind of space.

"Welcome Center — The Welcome Center will be located at the new entrance of National Avenue and Bear Boulevard (formerly Monroe Street). We intend for this facility to be constructed this coming year and opened before the end of calendar year 2014. It will be the first stop for visitors, especially prospective students and families. We estimate the cost of the Welcome Center to be $4 million. Our plan is to use the $1 million we received from the insurance company in the Bookstore theft claim as the University’s contribution for this project. The remainder of the cost will be paid for from private gifts."

http://blogs.missouristate.edu/president/2013/08/06/clifs... /

Missouri State built a welcome center for $4 million. The campus master plan has the visitor center log cabin moved over to the foot of the ridges. These aren't real elaborate or expensive structures. Take advantage of existing parking down by the Convo too.

I do not think the Welcome Center will be a huge footprint but I wonder if "visitors and families" seeing Campus for the first time will run into the same Parking Services debacle that families dropping kids in the Convo for basketball camp had years back. That would be a stellar introduction to Athens and the parking culture....

My mom and I just had this discussion as she insisted they do not ticket during the month of December....I had to remind her that Devo, Sayles, Offutt and others got tickets and towed from the COnvo parking lot during practice and while on the road when they were the only ones on campus during December. Of course some guys are still looking for a white (piece of crap) truck eh Wanny?

The problem when Groce came in was where to put one....not much space left in the Convo. The contact hours are limited in a week to 20 during the season http://ncaacompliance.nd.edu/countable_hours.shtml The trick JG, who scripted every minute of practice, had was to get warm ups in, shooting and drills started then take the time to dress the guys up, take them like grade school students across from the Convo to Peden to a shared weightroom full of other sports off season athletes, dress their already sweaty bodies back up (it's a winter sport) and go back across the road. You can imagine with 20 contact hours a week available how much time, effort, exposure of sweaty bodies to winter air that it takes to co ordinate all this. It is kind of a cluster f that every kid in the program laments and hates....especially when they are on the road and see how most other schools do it. Volley, basket, wrestling....all sports who deal with on a daily basis.

This is a definite positive impression you leave on any recruit as well.You are probably right about making one in the Convo because in season lifts are not as intense as off season ....making the space a priority and usable is the trick