Lawson Arena

Harry W. Lawson Ice Arena and Gabel Natatorium is a 3,667-seat multi-purpose arena, and adjacent natatorium in Kalamazoo, Michigan, located on the far Southwest corner of Western Michigan University's main campus. The arena is a single-level, horseshoe-style arena with a concourse at the top. It is home to the Western Michigan Broncos men's ice hockey team, and the synchronized skating club team. The arena is named after Harry W. Lawson, the founder of the hockey program at Western Michigan University. The Gabel Natatorium contains an olympic size swimming pool, and is home to the WMU Swimming and Diving Club team.From 1992 to 1994, while University Arena was being renovated, the basketball teams also called Lawson home.HistoryWith men's ice hockey slated to become a varsity sport at Western in 1973, the university needed to provide a suitable arena for the team. Prior to the arena and varsity status, the team would play their club games at an outdoor ice rink in Kalamazoo near the Crosstown Parkway. On November 15, 1974, Lawson Ice Arena opened its doors for the first time as the Broncos faced off against the Thunderbirds of Algoma University. The arena was named after Harry W. Lawson, a professor at Western Michigan who organized and founded the club hockey team in 1956, which eventually became the school's varsity team.With the men's hockey team flourishing in the 1980s and early 1990s, the university began with a series of renovations. The first was a $1 million series of upgrades during summer 1993, when a new floor, boards and glass, and cooling system were installed in the arena. This was followed by a $250,000 renovation in 1997, when chairback seating was added on the south side of the arena, club-style seating on the southwest corner of the arena above the ice resurfacer tunnel, and vinyl bleachers were installed. In 1998, the arena received a new $1 million metal roof, to replace the old, wooden roof. The next upgrade in 2006 was priced at $2.2 million, when both locker rooms were renovated, athletic training rooms were upgraded, and coach's quarters were added along with a film/meeting room. With the resurgence of the program around 2010, the newest upgrade was in 2013 with a new scoreboard at center ice along with three video boards placed around the arena. The upgrades were financed by an anonymous donor, who gave the university $1 million for video board upgrades in Lawson and University Arenas.