Idaho State University is renaming Holt Arena. Here’s what it will be called
Idaho State University’s Holt Arena is getting a new name.
On Tuesday, the Idaho State Board of Education approved the university’s request to change the name of the 12,000-seat multi-use arena in Pocatello to the ICCU Dome.
Idaho Central Credit Union, which is headquartered in Chubbuck and first opened in 1940, has committed a capital gift of $6 million in support of Idaho State athletics over the next 12 years, according to a news release from the university. These funds will be paid in annual installments beginning in Fiscal Year 2025, and the naming rights will be in place for a minimum period of 12 years.
In August 2021, Idaho State announced that ICCU agreed to fund a multimillion-dollar upgrade to Holt Arena that included new seating throughout the entire venue that complies with ADA standards, premium seating within the ICCU President’s Deck, a student-athlete meeting room and lounge, translucent panels above the ICCU President’s Deck, and the addition of a white liner on the inside of the repaired roof.
“This type of commitment is paramount to elevating our performance as a Division I athletic program,” ISU Athletic Director Pauline Thiros said in a statement. “Successful programs share the common thread of communities and organizations willing to champion them in a significant way. ICCU has come forward to lead as a champion of our student-athletes and our coaches, and their support will make a tremendous impact as we upgrade facilities, develop more competitive and strategic schedules, and expand our program budget to meet more of the needs of a championship program.”
Originally known as the ASISU Minidome, Holt Arena first opened on Sept. 26, 1970, and has held countless events since, including graduations, college football and basketball games, concerts, rodeos and high school football. The arena was the vision of former Idaho State Athletic Director Milton “Dubby” Holt, who hoped to draw more fans to Bengals football games by playing at night in a covered arena. ISU is making plans to honor the memory of Holt with a mural inside the ICCU Dome.
“I had the pleasure of calling Dubby my friend,” Thiros said. “He was shrewd in his business sense, had great passion behind his vision for Idaho State Athletics, and was deeply committed to utilizing every avenue available to build the program. I know that today, he would be delighted and proud to see this renewed investment in the facility, and in the student-athletes. Dubby will always be the architect of the Dome.”
Holt Arena was built at a cost of $2.8 million and funded through student fees after the student body voted to support the project. It hosted the 1987 and 1988 Division I-AA national championship football games — now the FCS subdivision of college football, which is where Idaho State competes in the Big Sky.
ICCU has funded a number of projects throughout the state recently, including an $11.5 million ICCU Bengal Alumni Center, which was constructed just north of Holt Arena. The 26,281-square-foot building serves as a meeting place and events center, and is the home of the ISU Sports Hall of Fame.
Idaho Central Credit Union also donated $10 million to the University of Idaho’s new basketball arena, which is now called ICCU Arena. And the credit union is the title sponsor for the home of the Idaho Steelheads hockey team, which is known as Idaho Central Arena in Boise.
