INDIANAPOLIS (AP) _ Indiana State Fair officials are expecting to open the renovated Fairgrounds Coliseum in April, three months ahead of schedule.

The 75-year-old arena has been shut down since October 2012 for a $63 million project that included gutting the interior in order to build two-level seating for 8,200 people and install a video scoreboard and new lighting and sound systems.

Organizers plan on celebrating the project by dubbing this summer's state fair the “Year of the Coliseum.''

Fair spokesman Andy Klotz tells The Indianapolis that the renovation gives the arena more flexibility so that it can host additional events.

Organizers to hold concerts in the coliseum during this year's fair. It also will be the home for IUPUI's basketball teams and the new Indy Fuel minor league hockey team.