Chicago Bulls fans who want to see authentic Michael Jordan memorabilia in a hall of fame can do that, provided they make the journey to the NBA Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts. Soon, if all goes as planned, Springfield, Illinois, will also be home to Jordan artifacts, not to mention any other famous players and teams from Illinois.
On Thursday at Scheels Sports Park at Legacy Pointe, a letter of intent was signed by the Legacy Pointe owners and Tim Turpin, an Indiana entrepreneur, to build the Illinois Sports Hall of Fame on roughly four to six acres of the facility grounds. A summer 2028 grand opening is the target date, Turpin told Illinois Times.
Actual blueprints have yet to be drawn up, and much hinges still on whether Turpin can raise the estimated $7.5 million to complete construction, but Turpin is optimistic Illinois sports fans will be able to see artifacts and displays honoring just about every pro, college and high school team in the state.
“We’re going to have the outside of the building done up in the colors and logos of every big pro and college team, and maybe some high school teams, from the state of Illinois,” Turpin said. “Cubs fans, Bears fans, Bulls fan, Illini fans – every team imaginable fans – will see their team driving by on (Interstate) 72 and say, ‘Hey, we gotta stop in there.’”
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Field of dreams
Turpin, who has developed halls of fame in states such as Indiana, Ohio and Alabama, will try to raise the money necessary by offering sponsorships of displays inside and out of the building, along with brick sponsorships in a large plaza entering the facility. The HOF building would be toward the south side of the sports complex, Turpin said, closer to I-72.
Admission to the building, Turpin said, would be $10 for adults and $5 for seniors and kids, with no charge for kids if they are part of a team participating in tournaments and other events at the sports complex.
Inside, every pro and college Illinois team will have dedicated sections honoring their past, and a large section for the Illinois High School Association will feature the same – along with many other sports that had/have a famous Illinoisan.
Outside, Turpin hopes to construct statues of Illinois team icons such as Jordan, Ernie Banks and Walter Payton, among others.
Turpin cited figures of 2 million people that annually visit the Scheels store next to the sports complex, plus another 2 million estimated to visit the sports complex itself, for giving the Hall of Fame a “built-in audience.”
Steve Luker, a managing partner of the Scheels Sports Park at Legacy Pointe, told Illinois Times, “We’re very happy to have the Illinois Sports Hall of Fame be on our grounds and to be moving forward with this.”
While the Illinois Sports Hall of Fame has yet to exist in brick-and-mortar form, one has existed online for two years, with Turpin as the principal organizer. As such, an annual dinner honoring the latest inductees took place in Springfield last year and will happen again on July 25 at the President Abraham Lincoln Springfield Hotel downtown.
This year’s inductees include former Cardinals pitcher Jason Isringhausen (from Brighton, Illinois), former Harlem Globetrotters star Mannie Jackson and basketball coach Cuonzo Martin, among others.