[media-credit name=’Photo courtesy of Kahler Slater’ align=’alignnone’ width=’648′][/media-credit]The University of Wisconsin Athletic Board reviewed plans for a new, comprehensive Wisconsin Athletics Facilities Master Plan, which would include a new indoor ice rink to be connected to the Kohl Center. The goal is to create the best facilities in the country for student athletes to compete at the highest level. John Chadima, UW associate athletics director, said the athletic board had input from a wide variety of people, which will be helpful to the department for future planning and expansion. "It's a plan that is conceptual in nature and was developed for us as a facility roadmap for athletics for over the next 10-20 years," Chadima said. According to the plan, Kahler Slater Architects of Milwaukee developed the designs with input from coaches, staff and campus personnel. The plan also includes expanding the Athletic Performance Center and improving the University Ridge Golf Course, pools at the Natatorium and Southeast Recreational Facility, and the McClain Center. Plans also call for a new indoor facility at the Goodman Diamond softball complex. As stated in the master plan, the purpose is to create an athletic community on campus using Camp Randall as a "hub" and develop supplementary facilities surrounding the football stadium. According to Chadima, the hockey facility would be the future venue site for the women's hockey team, as well as a practice site for the male and female teams. It would include locker rooms for both teams in addition to a new rink and would also include offices for the men's and women's teams that would overlook the ice. Chadima said he believes the facility as a whole would provide the women's hockey team with a "more intimate" setting from a competitive standpoint. "We have 1,500 to 2,500 fans at each game, cheering on the women's hockey team," Chadima said. "We would like to provide the fans and the team with a facility that caters to their needs." The men's hockey team currently practices at four main sites, which include the Kohl Center, the Arena at the Alliant Energy Center, the Camp Randall Sports Center and Capitol Ice Arena in Middleton. The women's team holds the majority of its practices at the Camp Randall Sports Center, also known as the Shell. Chadima said the athletic department's contract with the Alliant Energy Center, where the men's hockey team plays, expires in 2014. "We need to find a place for the men's hockey team to practice, preferably on campus, once the contract expires," he added. The facility would extend out from the Gate B side of the Kohl Center between the SERF and the Nicholas-Johnson Pavilion and would be able to seat as many as 4,400 people on three sides of the rink. In addition to the facility, an indoor atrium between the Nicholas-Johnson Pavilion and the new hockey facility would replace the walkway in front of Gate B. Both the timeline for breaking ground and the financial aspects of the master plan are unknown at this time, but Chadima said construction will not begin before July 1, 2009. Chadima stressed the athletic board has a lot of work to do and that the plan is likely to change over time. "We need to set our priorities, build a comprehensive fundraising plan, work through the various approval processes and more," Chadima said. "But at the very least, this master plan provides us with a good starting point."