Author: Don Muret

Firm Offers a Vision to Drive K.C. Ballpark Conversation

Firm Offers a Vision to Drive K.C. Ballpark Conversation

Posted by | Feb 3, 2020 | , ,

K.C. AT THE BAT: Pendulum Studio created unsolicited renderings for a 30,000-seat ballpark in downtown Kansas City, Mo. (Courtesy Pendulum Studio) Royals didn’t ask, but ‘it’s a conversation starter,’ Pendulum’s Cole says Kansas City sports architect Pendulum Studio has unveiled its vision for a new downtown stadium for Major League Baseball’s Royals. For the small designer of minor league parks and spring training venues, it’s a reboot of a discussion over a project some have wanted for decades. In this case, though, there are fresh renderings — unsolicited — for a 30,000-seat MLB park.   Jonathan Cole, a founding principal with Pendulum and veteran of three bigger sports design firms in town, said his 10-person shop completed the concept design on its  own without consulting with the Royals or city officials. The architect teamed with local chef and restaurateur Patrick Ryan on the food piece. Ryan runs Port Fonda, a Mexican eatery… Continue Reading Firm Offers a Vision to Drive K.C. Ballpark Conversation

To access this content you must be a subscriber and logged in with your subscriber credentials here. To subscribe to VenuesNow, click here for more information or here for combo subscriptions including sister-publication Pollstar.

Continue Reading Firm Offers a Vision to Drive K.C. Ballpark Conversation

Read More
Booking Deal Fills Rupp With More Than Hoops

Booking Deal Fills Rupp With More Than Hoops

Posted by | Jan 31, 2020 |

LEXINGTON, KY. — Carl Hall has one less hat to wear after handing off Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center booking duties to OVG Facilities on Jan. 1, 2018. The move has paid off handsomely, said Hall, longtime director of arena management at the 43-year-old venue.  Over the past two years, Brian Sipe, OVG’s director of booking at Rupp Arena, has helped double revenue from non-Kentucky basketball events. The numbers have grown substantially, according to data reported to Pollstar, sister publication of VenuesNow. (Oak View Group owns both magazines.) In 2017, the average ticket gross was $247,000 with an average of 6,500 tickets sold for four events reported by Rupp Arena officials. One year later, the average gross was $420,000 with an average of 6,600 tickets across 35 shows reported, including multiple-day family shows. Last year, the average ticket gross was $742,000 with an average of 8,300 tickets sold for… Continue Reading Booking Deal Fills Rupp With More Than Hoops

To access this content you must be a subscriber and logged in with your subscriber credentials here. To subscribe to VenuesNow, click here for more information or here for combo subscriptions including sister-publication Pollstar.

Continue Reading Booking Deal Fills Rupp With More Than Hoops

Read More
Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center: Building on Tradition

Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center: Building on Tradition

Posted by | Jan 31, 2020 |

WILDCAT WATCHERS: Fans watch the tipoff of the Kentucky-Alabama game at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center on Jan. 11. (Don Muret / Staff) Project at Lexington complex brings new comforts to Kentucky basketball fans LEXINGTON, KY. — The University of Kentucky holds a storied tradition in college basketball and a few of its fervent fans were celebrating early on a recent Saturday at the Hyatt Regency Lexington, which is attached to Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mimosas flowed at the hotel bar and portable carts offered beer and hard liquor in the Hyatt lobby before the noon tipoff between Kentucky and Alabama. The Southeastern Conference school prohibits the sale of alcohol at sports events, including city-owned Rupp Arena, but the arena sits steps away indoors and the lobby serves as a de facto extension of Rupp’s main concourse.  Midway through 2022, the layout will change dramatically as part… Continue Reading Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center: Building on Tradition

To access this content you must be a subscriber and logged in with your subscriber credentials here. To subscribe to VenuesNow, click here for more information or here for combo subscriptions including sister-publication Pollstar.

Continue Reading Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center: Building on Tradition

Read More
NFL, Populous Get Creative With Logistics

NFL, Populous Get Creative With Logistics

Posted by | Jan 29, 2020 | , ,

ROOM TO MANEUVER: Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla., the site of Sunday’s Super Bowl, sits on a 275-acre site. (Getty Images) Hard Rock Stadium site provides ample space with a few twists The Super Bowl returns to South Florida for the first time since 2010, and recent developments to the expansive property surrounding Hard Rock Stadium have led to some creative planning for Sunday’s 54th edition of the game. The 275-acre site gives the NFL and Populous, the league’s logistical consultant, ample space to work with for the most part, but the relocation of the Miami Open tennis tournament in 2019 to Hard Rock Stadium resulted in adjustments for pro football’s crown jewel event. In addition, the Miami Dolphins, whose owner, Stephen Ross, owns the stadium and land surrounding the building in Miami Gardens, Fla., are constructing a $135 million practice facility west of the venue that will… Continue Reading NFL, Populous Get Creative With Logistics

To access this content you must be a subscriber and logged in with your subscriber credentials here. To subscribe to VenuesNow, click here for more information or here for combo subscriptions including sister-publication Pollstar.

Continue Reading NFL, Populous Get Creative With Logistics

Read More
Builders Work Around Skilled Labor Shortage

Builders Work Around Skilled Labor Shortage

Posted by | Jan 26, 2020 | ,

WARRIORS’ GAME PLAN: Chase Center Training instructed workers on the job to help build the Golden State Warriors’ arena. (Courtesy Golden State Warriors / Chase Center) Job training programs are designed to refill pool of blue-collar workers for arena and stadium construction projects A severe shortage in skilled labor to build arenas and stadiums is driving facility construction costs to unprecedented levels, forcing teams, municipalities and general contractors to search for alternatives to meet the demand for blue-collar jobs in a thriving economy. It comes at a time when the cost to build big league arenas has now crossed the $1 billion threshold for projects in San Francisco, Seattle, New York and Greater Los Angeles, where the NBA’s Clippers propose to build an arena and practice facility in Inglewood. The lack of skilled labor was a key factor that drove the cost of Chase Center to an eye-popping $1.6 billion in… Continue Reading Builders Work Around Skilled Labor Shortage

To access this content you must be a subscriber and logged in with your subscriber credentials here. To subscribe to VenuesNow, click here for more information or here for combo subscriptions including sister-publication Pollstar.

Continue Reading Builders Work Around Skilled Labor Shortage

Read More

This Month's VenueNow

Most Recent