Richmond HS gym to lose national ranking with new renovations

RICHMOND, IND. — Renovations to Richmond High School’s Tiernan Center will drop the gym from the ranks of one of the largest in the county in terms of seating capacity.

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As a part of a $1.3 million project, new bleachers will be installed on both levels of the gym, which first opened in 1984.

The current seating capacity, around 7,800 is the fourth-largest in the county. However the project will remove around 2,000 seats, bringing the new capacity to around 5,700.

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While the seating capacity will change, district officials said the overall feel of the gym will remain the same.

“You’re not going to change the Tiernan Center and what it brings when you walk in and it kind of takes your breath away,” Warren Cook, Athletic Director, Richmond Community Schools said.

Last year the district replaced the lighting and sound system inside the Tiernan Center. Work on the next phases of the project will start June 1 with the lower deck of bleachers, according to the district.

The replacement of the upper deck of bleachers starts after that, with the project scheduled to be completed by December 1, in time for the start of basketball season.

“It’s going to be a very busy summer for us … we think that it’s going to give us a much better facility here and we’re excited about it,” Rob Tidrow, Chief Operations Officer, Richmond Community Schools said.

“(The Tiernan Center) is on its 35th, 36th year so now its going to give us another 35, 40 years for this facility.”

Funds for the project were generated from bond money, according to the district.