Allston, MA The 17-time NBA Champion Boston Celtics and NB Development Group LLC hosted an official groundbreaking and naming ceremony today for the Celtics new world-class practice and training facility at Boston Landing, which is scheduled to open in the Spring of 2018. In honor of the late Boston Celtics president and coach Arnold “Red” Auerbach, it will be named  The Auerbach Center at New Balance world headquarters. The naming of the facility is the centerpiece of a new partnership between New Balance and the Celtics, which will highlight the shared focus on community, sport and innovation between the two Boston-based brands. Jim Davis, chairman and owner of New Balance, was a close friend of Red’s, and Red served as a mentor to Davis and his family for many years.

Rendering of court - Allston, MA

“We are proud to be in partnership with New Balance and honored that they have agreed to carry forth Red’s legacy in the naming of the Auerbach Center at New Balance headquarters,” said Wyc Grousbeck, co-owner and governor of the Boston Celtics. “Red had no peer as an innovator in our sport, and we feel like it is fitting that our partner New Balance will help us continue to be a leading innovator as we pursue Banner 18 and beyond.”

Elkus Manfredi Architects is leading the design and John Moriarty & Associates is handling the construction.

“Red Auerbach was a true entrepreneur whose passion for winning and dedication to the sport of basketball and the Boston Celtics was equally matched with his commitment to people and his local community,” said Davis “New Balance is extremely proud to join with the Boston Celtics in honoring his professional achievements and personal values through ‘Red’s House’ at our Boston world headquarters.”

As part of New Balance’s naming rights partnership the brand will become an official partner of the Boston Celtics and will receive significant brand presence throughout the facility. The partnership also puts a strong focus on year-round community initiatives, including a commitment to renovate neighborhood basketball courts and tracks as well as entitlement of Celtics Basketball Camps. Other elements of the partnership include digital and social activation, grass roots marketing, and in-arena TV visible signage at the TD Garden.

Ground breaking

The Boston Celtics practice facility will be the latest element at Boston Landing — at 55 feet in the air cantilevered out to the edge of the Mass Pike. The Celtics new practice home, including the team’s 17 NBA championship banners, will be visible from the Mass. Pike with a forty foot glass wall enclosing the practice courts. The practice facility will encompass 70,000 s/f.

“We are excited to be a part of this great accomplishment for the Boston Celtics, New Balance, and the City of Boston,” said Lt. governor Karyn Polito. “Bringing the Boston Celtics practice facility to Boston Landing further demonstrates the organizations’ shared commitment to the enhancement of culture and wellness in our communities and we are proud to be the home of a world-class sports team able to compete at the highest level.”

“The Celtics are part of Boston’s long tradition of athletic excellence, and I am excited that now the team won’t just be winning in Boston - they’ll be training in Boston as well,” said mayor Martin Walsh. “There is no better place for this new practice facility than at Boston Landing, a state-of-the-art mixed-use development that in its short time of existence has proven to be an economic engine for the area. I congratulate Jim Davis of New Balance, and the Boston Celtics on the new Auerbach Center, named after the late, legendary President and Coach Red Auerbach, and I look forward to welcoming the Celtics to their new practice facility.”

“We are thrilled to break ground today on behalf of the Boston Celtics at Boston Landing,” Jim Halliday, managing director for NB Development. “Boston Landing is truly becoming the gateway into the City of Boston from the west, while at the same time a unique culture of health, wellness, and movement with the addition of the Auerbach Center.”

Features of the comprehensive practice facility will include:

• Two state-of-the-art parquet floor basketball courts where the team will practice

• Leading edge audio-visual technology throughout the facility

• Expanded strength and conditioning, training, and recovery facilities

• Best-in-class locker rooms and players’ lounge

• Physical therapy areas including hydrotherapy pools

• Sports science and nutrition facilities

• Expanded media work room, press conference and broadcast facilities

• A flexible hospitality area designed for community relations activities, partner gatherings and other guest events

• Work space for the team’s coaching and basketball front office staffs

The team’s current practice facility at Healthpoint in Waltham, MA has served as the Celtics practice home since 1999.

Boston Landing is a 15-acre mixed-use development in the Allston-Brighton neighborhood of Boston that includes the new world headquarters of New Balance Athletics, Inc. and the Warrior Ice Arena – the new Boston Bruins practice facility that opened earlier this fall. A commuter rail station will be completed on the Framingham-Worcester line in Spring of 2017. In addition, the development will include additional office buildings, retail and restaurant space, a hotel and a sports complex.