March 14, 2008

Carthage College to Build $15 Million Sports Arena

By Pete Millard
The Business Journal of Milwaukee

Carthage College in Kenosha is building a $15 million sports arena for basketball and volleyball that is being financed with a $5 million gift from the Tarble Family Foundation of Los Angeles.

The Tarble Sports Arena will replace an existing facility that is connected to the 156,000-square-foot Northeast Tarble Athlete and Recreational Center that was also funded in part with a $5 million Tarble family donation in 1998. The Tarble Athletic and Recreational Center includes an indoor track, swimming pool and weight training facilities for students and athletes.

The Tarble Family Foundation is managed by Jan Tarble, the daughter of Pat and Newton Tarble. Newton Tarble was one of the four founders of Snap-on Inc., a tool manufacturing company based in Kenosha.

The Tarble Sports Arena exterior will be integrated into the exterior of the athletic and recreational center to give the appearance of one structure, said John Camosy, president of Camosy Inc., the Kenosha company that is the construction management firm for the Tarble Arena.

“The high-tech lighting and sound requirements of the building make this a challenging project,” he said.

In addition to serving as the home arena for Carthage College basketball and volleyball teams, the college will host regional high school sports tournaments and hold concerts and other entertainment events.

Camosy said the new 70,000-square-foot arena will have auditorium and bleacher seating for more than 3,000 people. There will also be suites and sky boxes built into the arena that offer a unique viewing platform, said Camosy.

The Tarble Arena will replace a Carthage College building called the Performing Education Center, which was constructed b John Camosy's father, Ray Camosy Sr. in 1960.

In addition to the basketball and volleyball courts the Tarble Arena will include multi-purpose space for classrooms and indoor golf practice facility, locker room and varsity strength training facilities.

Camosy Inc. will begin construction of the arena later this month. The sports facility will be completed in the time for the 2009 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin basketball season.

In a press release issued by Carthage College at the end of February men's head basketball coach Bosko Djurickovic said the new arena will help the Division III school recruit student athletes who might otherwise not consider the Kenosha college.