The Leavey Event Center, popularly known as Harold J. Toso Pavilion, has been putting the final touches on reconstruction efforts that have been going on for the past year.

The Center will officially open for men's basketball competition vs. Fresno State on Dec. 13. The women's basketball team will play in the new arena on Dec. 27 against Maryland.

"It's first class and it looks like a big-time arena when you drive by it," first-year women's head coach Chris Denker said. "We're excited to play in it. It's going to be a great place to call home."

Opened in 1975, the Leavey Activities Center was built at a cost of $4.6 million with a capacity of 5,000. Known for its air-supported fabric roof, it was a multi-purpose facility with a running track, two recreational areas, conference rooms, a swimming pool, weight room and men's and women's lockerrooms. The University's athletic department offices and sports medicine center were also contained within the 101,300-square foot facility.

The roof was similar to the Silverdome in Pontiac, Mich., the RCA Dome in Indianapolis, Ind., and the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, N.Y.

Although it had developed dozens of leaks, the roof lasted seven years longer than its life expectancy, surviving vandalism and tears.

But that famous roof was no more by 4:08 p.m. on April 4, 2000, when the "Bubble" was deflated.

During a ceremony that began eight minutes prior, a switch was thrown, turning off the 11 giant fans that have kept 60,000 square feet of Teflon-coated Fiberglas aloft for 25 years. The removal made way for a flat roof for renamed Leavey Event Center.

The new roof is the first phase of an estimated $15 million renovation project. Additionally, the first phase will replace the floor and lower bleachers of the basketball court, scoreboard, sound system, lighting, restrooms, entrances and add a two-story glass wall around the entire center. The new bleachers won't change the capacity of the 5,000-seat arena.

The second phase, to begin in March 2001, will build new athletic department offices and concession stands, additional restrooms, a media room and a weight room, as well as rebuild and enlarge the adjacent outdoor swimming pool. During both construction phases, the athletic department offices will be located temporary structures next to the Malley Center.

The SCU women's basketball team's first-round WNIT game on March 16 was the last intercollegiate sporting event held under the dome. The World Kendo Championship was the last event in the arena, March 24-26.

The Center, which has been the host facility for seven West Coast Conference Basketball Tournaments, was most recently renovated in 1997, when the Sports Medicine and Treatment Center and team rooms for volleyball, men's and women's basketball, baseball and men's and women's soccer, were expanded.

The Leavey Event Center is named after the late founder of Farmers Insurance, Thomas E. Leavey, who graduated from Santa Clara in 1922. In addition to the women's basketball program, it is the home of the Broncos men's basketball and women's volleyball teams.

The original center was designed by architects Albert A. Hoover and Associates of Palo Alto, Calif., and built in 1975. The roof was built by Birdair Structures of Buffalo, N.Y. At the time of the original "inflation" of the roof, the song "Tiny Bubbles" by Don Ho was played over loudspeakers. General Contractor for the Leavey reconstruction project is Devcon Construction Inc. of Milpitas, which also built the adjacent Pat Malley Fitness and Recreation Center. The roof was built by Esherick, Honesey, Dodge and Davis Co., while the arena is being reconstructed by Ellerbe Becket.