St. Thomas announces new home for Tommies Hockey

In Jan. the University of St. Thomas announced they received a record $75 million donation from a private donor that is going towards building a multi-sport and multi-use, on-campus arena. This new facility will host Tommies hockey and basketball, commencement ceremonies, academic convocations, speakers, career fairs, and other events for the university and the community. The Tommies women’s and men’s hockey teams currently play their home games at the St. Thomas Ice Arena in Mendota Heights.

The university received $75 million as a gift from Lee and Penny Anderson for the project. In a corresponding move, the arena will be named after the donors and will be known as the; Lee and Penny Anderson Arena.

St. Thomas President Rob Vischer recently told a Minnesota news page, he expects the new facility to bring an enhanced experience for students and fans. He also expects this to create a new community and economic asset for the Twin Cities.

The new facility will be built where its athletic campus currently sits, which is near the athletic fields and the Anderson Parking Ramp, the arena will seat 4,000 spectators for hockey and 5,000 for basketball… The Cretin Residence Hall, Service Center, and McCarthy Gym are presently located where the arena is expected to be built. These buildings and facilities must be torn down to build the arena. The plan is to break ground in 2024 and open the facility in the fall of 2025.