Inside The Arena at Innovation Mile: A first look at the Noblesville Boom’s $36.5M new home
The Pacers’ G League affiliate has a new identity, a new home in Noblesville, and big plans for growth inside The Arena at Innovation Mile.
NOBLESVILLE — It’s an exciting time for the Noblesville Boom — the Pacers’ G League affiliate. This week, the team will play its first game at its new $36.5 million home that officially opened just two months ago: The Arena at Innovation Mile.
This milestone comes two years after the groundbreaking and a decade after Pacers owner Herb Simon purchased the Fort Wayne Mad Ants. The franchise relocated to Indianapolis in 2021 and now has a new city and fan base to connect with.
For years, the team played most of its home games at noon on weekdays, dictated by the Pacers’ schedule and Gainbridge Fieldhouse availability.
But not anymore — that special era ended last March.
New city: Noblesville
New name: Noblesville Boom
New logo
New mascot (to be unveiled Tuesday night at an open scrimmage)
New team colors — highlighted by cyan, leaning into the Pacers’ recent City Edition uniform success.
While the team will continue to practice and train at the Ascension St. Vincent Center in downtown Indianapolis, home games will now be played about 25 miles (and 35 minutes) northeast at The Arena at Innovation Mile.
General manager Chris Taylor and head coach Tom Hankins and return to lead the basketball side. On the business side, Ryan Grant was hired in September as Boom president of business operations. Meanwhile, Todd Taylor — who helped grow the Mad Ants/Boom brand — is stepping away from his role as president of business operations for Pacers Sports & Entertainment, though he’ll stay on as an advisor for a few months.
Opening night for the Boom is Friday at Grand Rapids. Then, the teams will complete a home-and-home series Saturday in the first-ever game held at the new arena. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.
“It feels like we’re moving about a million miles an hour, building a plane while it’s flying through the air here as we try to tie up everything.,” said Justin Jordan, the general manager of the building. “A lot of moving pieces, trying to get everything buttoned up to start welcoming the public into the building.
“The overall economic impact of The Arena at Innovation Mile is expected to be in the billions over the course of 30 years. The main driver of that and initial tenant being the Boom and those games that we’re gonna host here. We think that that’s gonna be the catalyst for everything else we intend to do — from private events to concerts to comedy and anything in between.”
I recently got a full behind-the-scenes tour of The Arena at Innovation Mile — and it’s spectacular.
There’s seating for about 3,400, though it can be expanded depending on the event. The Arena Club is going to be a big hit, and the concession areas — including Deer Creek Café and Hometown Eats — make perfect sense for this community.
The arena sits in a growing area of Noblesville, surrounded by new development and ample hotel space for visiting teams and fans.
The first event, held in early August, was a youth basketball camp. Noblesville Mayor Chris Jensen later delivered his State of the City address from center court.
Come join me for an exclusive look inside the new home of the Noblesville Boom.
🎥 Watch the video tour below.
Photos
