Fifth Third Arena is home to the UC Bearcats men’s and women’s basketball teams and women’s volleyball team. Renovations to the 26-year-old facility, originally named the Myrl H. Shoemaker Center, include the creation of a 360-degree seating bowl with space for 11,500 spectators. The new design will reduce the arena’s capacity from 13,176 seats to 11,500, which allows for more comfortable seating — permanent seats will replace rollaway bleachers — and better spectator sight lines. These new changes finally address issues that were apparent since the arena first opened in September 1989.

The renovation also includes new concessions and restrooms, an upper-level concourse with fan amenities, expanded food and beverage options, a new Bearcats lounge and super suites. A new main entrance and plaza with ticketing and guest services round out the rest of the renovation. The project is pursuing LEED certification.

Construction on the arena’s four new luxury suites above the end-zone seating will begin next month; however, major renovation work won’t start until next spring after the 2016-17 basketball season ends, according to Cincinnati.com. During construction, the Bearcats will need to find a place to play for the 2017-18 basketball season. No location has been chosen yet.

Last August, UC Board of Trustees approved an interim $2.2 million funding request to allow the Populous and Moody Nolan design team — both of which hold offices across the nation — to remain on schedule, with construction anticipated to start in March 2016. As of December 2015, the university had raised only $25 million for the project, forcing it late last year to push back most of the work to April 2017. The project is expected to be 100 percent privately funded through suite and ticket sales as well as donations, according to Cincinnati.com.

The construction of the new arena may help enhance the school’s chances of joining the Big 12 conference, as several schools compete for bids. For instance, the University of Memphis pledged to make $500 million in facilities upgrades if it joins the Big 12, according to Cincinnati.com. UC, itself, has made $300 million in facilities upgrades in the past decade, including an $86 million of Nipper Stadium last year. If UC joined the Big 12, UC President Santa Ono said the university could look at expanding the stadium even more, reported Cincinnati.com.

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Moody Nolan has been involved in a number of educational facility designs throughout the country. Since opening its office in D.C., the firm has worked on several local projects including the District of Columbia Public Schools’ Paul Laurence Dunbar Senior High School, University of the District of Columbia’s David A. Clark School of Law and projects throughout the District of Columbia Public School system.

Prior to opening its Washington D.C. office, the firm had six other locations around the country, including its headquarters in Ohio. The company is the largest African American owned and managed design firm in the country, with more than 160 employees. The firm was founded in 1982 by Curtis J. Moody, FAIA, NCARB, LEED AP, and Howard E. Nolan, PE. Since its formation they have grown tremendously and have worked on projects in more than 40 states.

The event honored the founders, employees, the company’s design commitments, as well as its continued success. The firm specializes in higher education, sports/recreation, student-focused, health care and public service facilities. They have also been recognized with more than 194 local, state and national design citations, according to Moody Nolan.

Of the many design awards, Fisk University was one of the most recent projects completed by the firm. Moody Nolan won three design awards for the John Wesley Work House historical renovation project at Fisk University in Nashville, Tenn.

“We have enjoyed working with Fisk University for many years and were excited when they were awarded the grant for this historic renovation. We worked closely with Fisk, the National Park Service and the contractor, Rock City Construction for this remarkable transformation back into a valuable building,” said Brian Tibbs, partner and director of the southeast operations for Moody Nolan in a statement.

Moody Nolan has been in business for 30 years — and has shown no signs of slowing down. Along with their design awards, they have also won new project bids, including the new student recreation center on the campus of Prairie View A&M University in Prairie View, Texas.

The firm was recently awarded the $31 million project, estimated to begin in early 2013, and has a tentative design plan in place.

“Designing and building recreation facilities allows us to work with the client and discover a design that best fits their needs, and for the university projects, the needs of the students and staff,” said Moody. “We can really apply responsive architecture features to student recreation facilities and create innovative, functional and aesthetically pleasing buildings.”

The celebration featured friends, clients and family of the Moody Nolan firm. They toasted to success over the past 30 years, the company’s five-year anniversary in Washington D.C., and to many more successes in the years to come.

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The design firm also earned the Innovative Architecture and Design Award from Recreation Management, a magazine for recreation and fitness facility managers. Moody Nolan received the award for its work on the new Ithaca College Athletics and Events Center. One judge praised the facility for having “good integration of form and function to create an iconic focal point.” The design maximizes the use of natural ventilation through the structure and a tower, by concentrating wind flow to dramatically decrease energy requirements. The company also earned an honorable mention from Learning by Design and an Outstanding Designs award from American School & University magazine.

Moody Nolan’s work at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Union South tied with another project for top honors from Wisconsin’s The Daily Reporter and received best-in-show from the Wisconsin State Construction Industry out of 30 possible applicants. The judging panel indicated it was recognizing the company for integrating student ideas in a campus space that will also be available for use by the community. The 170,000-square-foot facility the firm worked on features recreation and entertainment aspects, including a bowling alley and climbing wall, expanded food and retail offerings, and a 450-seat auditorium.

Curt Moody, founder of Moody Nolan in 1982, was very pleased with the awards and with the success of his company.

“The range of awards we’ve won solidifies the diversity of Moody Nolan and the talents of the architects,” he said. “As a firm, we strive to deliver our clients innovative designs within the parameters they provide. Every project is unique and we take a client’s dream and aspiration and make it a reality. It is great to look back and reflect on the success we have had for our clients on these projects.”

Moody said the company targeted about 14 specific awards on any given year as a baseline goal and “this year we exceeded that tremendously and we are not done yet.” The founder said his company now asks clients from the beginning of the design process if there are certain awards they are interested in pursuing based on their industries and areas of interest and uses that information to shape the plans, without any additional budget requirements.

Founded in Columbus, Ohio, Moody Nolan now has more than 160 employees spread out in regional offices across seven states, stretching from Dallas to Chicago, and has taken on projects in over 40 states. The company will be celebrating its 30th anniversary with special events throughout the year. Moody Nolan has been recognized with over 185 local, state, and national design citations since its inception, as well as being named Gold Medal Firm of the Year in 2006 by the Ohio Chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

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