Coralville is officially getting a big boost from the state of Iowa as they plan to build a $70 million arena in the Iowa River Landing development.

The Coralville City Council has approved a $12 million grant to the project, approved by the Iowa Economic Development Authority this summer. The vote was 4-0, with council member Tom Gill not present.

The Iowa River Landing Reinvestment District will collect the money in hotel and sales taxes over the next 20 years to help pay approximately 17 percent of the arena project's cost.

The arena project will also include the Johnson County Historical Society, an antique car museum, and the the Iowa Fitness and Sports Performance Institute.

During Tuesday's council meeting, they also unanimously approved a contract with JLG Architects for architecture services for the arena and other projects. The contract will pay JLG 6.25 percent on the work on the Iowa Arena. Some of the previously released architectural renderings are below, although final plans have not been unveiled.

Plans call for the Iowa Arena to have a capacity of more than 6,000 people. It's expected to host concerts, a University of Iowa club hockey team, and other events.

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