Last year, the tournaments drew 36,390 unique attendees, according to an economic impact report from the CIAA and Visit Baltimore, and about 66,000 total attendees over the 22 basketball games. The CIAA, founded in 1912, is an NCAA Division II conference that consists mostly of historically Black colleges and universities on the East Coast, including Maryland’s Bowie State. Before moving them to Baltimore, the CIAA hosted its basketball tournaments in Charlotte, North Carolina, for 15 years. ![]() The original contract between the city and the CIAA was set to expire after this year, but the two parties agreed in June to a two-year extension through 2025. “The City cannot wait for the CIAA Tournament and the April concerts in the new CFG Bank Arena.”īaltimore will be home to the CIAA Tournament for the second season in a row after hosting the conference last year for the first time since 1952. “Oak View Group has been a tremendous partner and has delivered exactly as agreed,” Mayor Brandon Scott said in a statement. The arena’s capacity when construction is completed will be approximately 14,000. An Oak View Group spokesperson said enough seating will be available for the tournaments. The expected changes to the arena include additional seats and suites, updated concourses, improved acoustics and a redesigned exterior. Workers continue to prepare the CFG Bank Arena for next week’s 2023 CIAA Men’s & Women’s Basketball Tournament. “But we also have work to do to get finished for April 7 and 8.” “They’re going to see a lot of the new arena, and it’s going to be a great experience,” he said. For next week, though, he’s asking CIAA tournament attendees for “patience” as only a limited part of the arena will be open. Leiweke is “confident” that CFG Bank Arena will be fully operational in time for the Springsteen concert, as well as the Eagles show April 8. They will see the difference, and it will be fantastic.” The experience from the tournament next week will be better than anything anyone’s seen, even though we’re still a work in progress. The tournament is a high priority for us. “That was our commitment to the tournament. “We committed to them that we’d have the building finished as it related to the parts of the building they needed,” said Leiweke, former general manager of the Baltimore Blast. The court, lower bowl of seating, locker rooms, broadcast facilities, bathrooms and some concession stands are all ready for the dual 12-team tournaments, he said. ![]() Tim Leiweke, Oak View Group’s chairman and CEO, said that while most parts of the venue, including the exterior, are still under construction, CFG Bank Arena is ready to host the basketball tournaments for the CIAA, the nation’s oldest historically Black athletic conference. But the revamp is still in its final stages in preparation for an April 7 concert featuring Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band - the event that CFG Bank Arena and its developer, California-based investment firm Oak View Group, are calling the venue’s grand opening. Work is not yet finished on the $250 million renovation of CFG Bank Arena that started last year even as the downtown venue prepares for its first event next week.ĬFG Bank Arena, formerly known as Baltimore Arena and Royal Farms Arena, is set to host the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association men’s and women’s basketball tournaments Tuesday through Saturday. Baltimore Sun eNewspaper Home Page Close Menu
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