The city plans to spend $2.3 million removing and replacing an Alamodome scoreboard that’s only six years old, according to a City Council agenda document.
Purchased in October of 2019, the city says the scoreboard has weathered “excessive wear and tear” from being dismantled and moved between the northern part of the dome and the center.
Now there are no replacement parts or repair services available for the existing video board, according to the agenda document.
So the council will vote Thursday on a proposal to install a new modern LED video scoreboard and display control system from OES-USA, Inc. — expected to be ready before the NCAA Woman’s Final Four Volleyball Championship being held at the Alamodome in December.
“In today’s modern time, venues are installing larger, detailed, custom center-hung scoreboards,” the manufacturer says on its website. “…Your display is built to last with the best components.”
The city’s $2.3 million purchase is expected to include two new center-hung scoreboards, so that it doesn’t have to move.
One will be used for the stadium setup, while the other is used for the arena setup, and both are expected to last at least a decade.
“Video boards like this usually last about 10 years,” Chasnoff said. “However, this scoreboard has worn out faster because it has been taken apart and moved over the years to fit different Alamodome setups.”
The current scoreboard is about 18 feet by 33 feet.
The new scoreboard for the stadium setup will be bigger, about 18 feet by 39 feet. The new scoreboard for the arena setup will be smaller, about 15 feet by 33 feet.
The Alamodome underwent $60 million in renovations in preparation for the 2018 NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four. It got another $29 million facelift before hosting the event again in 2025, including new box suites.
Funding for the new scoreboard is expected to come from the Alamodome Improvement and Contingency Fund.
Wholesale renovations to the aging Alamodome was once a high priority for the city, which received a special tax designation from the state to help pay for it, along with the convention center upgrades, during the 2023 Legislative Session.
But that pot of money has since been redivided to provide some funds for the new downtown Spurs arena, and city officials are pushing back the timeline for potentially scaled-back Alamodome improvements.
“The big renovation we have in our timeline, we pushed that out to about 10 years from now. So the 2035-ish range, for planning purposes,” the city’s chief of financial and administrative services Ben Gorzell told the City Council in January. “When you start talking about the major renovations of the Alamodome, the numbers get bigger fast.”
An economic impact analysis the city commissioned in 2025 suggested the venue needed infrastructure upgrades, additional digital signage, enhanced food and beverage options and upgrades to entry plazas.
In the meantime, Gorzell said the city would focus on opportunities for “smaller-scale investments in the dome” that either have a financial return, or “enhance attendee experience.”
Chasnoff said Wednesday that the city is reviewing what it will cost to operate and maintain the Alamodome over the next 10 years, and staff will bring recommendations to City Council this fall.
“In the meantime, the City found that the Alamodome’s center-hung scoreboard needs to be replaced so it can fully support major events planned this year, including UTSA football and the NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball Championship,” he said.
