Nexus Center
The Nexus Center project was officially announced by Oneida County Executive Anthony J. Picente Jr. on May 16, 2017 as part of his U-District vision for downtown Utica.
It was envisioned by Oneida County and its partners at the Upper Mohawk Valley Auditorium Authority and Mohawk Valley Garden as a complement to the multi-million dollar county and state investments to renovate the Adirondack Bank Center at the Utica Memorial Auditorium, and as a means to drive more visitors and tourism dollars to the area through youth sports tournament play.
Oneida County and the UMVAA have committed $32 million in bonding for the Nexus Center, with the county directly adding another $15 million to the project, along with $22 million from New York State. The result is a magnificent $64 million facility that will attract more than 320,000 annual visitors who are expected to spend over $26 million in area businesses.
The 169,440 square-foot facility, conveniently located off the New York State Thruway, features three multipurpose 200-foot by 85-foot playing surfaces that can be utilized as ice sheets or turf. The Nexus Center is connected by a walkway to the Adirondack Bank Center at the Utica Memorial Auditorium, which brings the total up to four surfaces for sports tournaments.
The feature rink at the Nexus Center is home to the Utica University Women’s team and the Utica Comets’ Junior teams. This 1,200-seat venue includes several luxury boxes overlooking the ice surface.
It features 20 locker rooms, commercial office space, college classrooms, retail stores, state-of-the-art training space, a fitness track and food and beverage services.
