Downtown Arena

Kings Rocket Department

SACRAMENTO, CA –Today, the Sacramento Kings, the City of Sacramento and AECOM released the first round of renderings for the downtown Entertainment and Sports Center (ESC). The announcement was first made via an email to season ticket holders.

The first set of renderings comes after six months of workshops, open houses, town halls, and focus groups, in addition to multiple surveys yielding responses from over 20,000 Sacramentans. The result is an arena design that is iconic, that celebrates the best of Sacramento, and that will showcase the latest in environmental and technological innovation.

“When we bought the Sacramento Kings, we committed to the NBA and to the people of Sacramento that we wouldn’t just build a new arena, but that we’d build a world-class entertainment venue, an arena truly for the 21st century,” said Kings owner Vivek Ranadive. “Today is another major step forward in that effort.”

In addition to a dramatic Grand Entrance, measuring 50 x 150 feet, multiple balconies, and Farm-To-Fork programming throughout the facility, the skin of the arena itself will also reflect the very fabric of Northern California. The arena will be constructed using materials that range from glass to recycled aluminum to precast concrete, composed of sand from San Benito and rocks of Sierra limestone.

“We so appreciate the input and feedback from our community,” said Kings team president Chris Granger. “Our city deserves a building that is iconic, that provides for world class entertainment, and that will stage the greatest home court advantage in sports.”

The Kings are on schedule to break ground in the Summer of 2014 and to open the venue in October of 2016.

“We set our sights on a design that’s never been done before,” said Jon Niemuth, AECOM director of sports for the Americas. “Each design element shows that this arena is built for Sacramento. We’re aiming for a facility that celebrates the city, strengthens the downtown community, supports the team’s success and offers an unmatched fan experience.”

"This is a glimpse not only into the new arena, but into the future of downtown Sacramento,” said Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson. “I applaud the Kings and AECOM for developing a design that achieves so many goals: reactivating downtown, developing an iconic civic space, and promoting our emerging green and agricultural sectors. The extensive public outreach done by the Kings and City has paid off in a design that truly celebrates the best of our community's great past and even brighter future."

For a link to the official video introducing the renderings, click here.

To download high resolution photos of the arena renderings, click here

AECOM has designed more NBA arenas than any other firm, and has extensive experience with urban planning and international sporting events, including Olympic Games and World Cup. AECOM is a global provider of professional technical and management support services to a broad range of markets, including transportation, facilities, environmental, energy, water and government. With approximately 45,000 employees around the world, including a satellite office in Sacramento, AECOM is a leader in all of the key markets that it serves. AECOM provides a blend of global reach, local knowledge, innovation and technical excellence in delivering solutions that create, enhance and sustain the world's built, natural, and social environments. A Fortune 500 company, AECOM serves clients in more than 140 countries. More information on AECOM and its services can be found at www.aecom.com.

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Kings, the City of Sacramento and AECOM release first round of renderings for new downtown arena

“As we have stated in the past, we love Sacramento and are committed to doing all we can to support the City's efforts to develop an entertainment and sports complex that will help revitalize our downtown. The Kings appreciate the support we have received from the community and know that the organization is fortunate to have the best and most loyal fans in all of the NBA. We share the many concerns expressed by the Mayor, The 4000 and others in Sacramento regarding the anti-arena campaign and are prepared to work to support their leadership.”

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Sacramento Kings Statement from President Chris Granger

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Sacramento Kings President Chris Granger released the following statement on the City of Sacramento's draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the Downtown Entertainment and Sports Center:

"We commend the City of Sacramento on reaching this latest milestone in our efforts to revitalize the downtown and create over 4,000 jobs. We look forward to continuing to work with the City and Sacramento residents as we build not only the most state-of-the-art and fan-friendly arena in the NBA, but the most environmentally sustainable as well. This project will be built to the highest environmental standards possible – from farm to fork concessions and recycling to public transit and air quality."

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Kings Statement on Release of Draft Environmental Impact Report of ESC

-Public Will Have Range of Opportunities to Provide Feedback-

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The Sacramento Kings and City of Sacramento today released plans to gather suggestions on the design of the new entertainment and sports center (ESC) at the Downtown Plaza mall.

"Since the inception of this project, our primary goal has been to create an iconic space that reflected and celebrated the best of Sacramento and the region at large," said Kings President and Chief Operating Officer Chris Granger. "We're excited to continue this dialogue with the community and look forward to hearing their input and ideas through this series of open houses and workshops."

Members of the public will have numerous opportunities to participate:

Online survey. The public is encouraged to complete a 5-10 minute online survey designed to collect community input on key arena design concepts. The survey will be available online at here from September 27 to October 6.

Small group workshops. We will randomly select a subset of survey respondents to participate in small group workshops with the Kings, the City and the project architect, AECOM. These focus groups will gather in-depth feedback on specific design considerations including input received from the survey. Those interested in attending are encouraged to sign up by taking the online survey here.

Open House. The City will host an open house on Saturday, October 5th from 9:00 – 10:30 a.m. at the Tsakopoulos Library East Room (828 I Street) to educate the public on key design issues and gather additional community feedback. Go to www.cityofsacramento.org for more details.

City Hall Foyer. The Kings, AECOM and City will have informational materials and comment cards available in the foyer of City Hall (915 I Street) from October 7 - 14. The comment cards will be included with the information received from the online survey. More details on www.cityofsacramento.org.

These events represent the latest in an ongoing series of activities intended to engage members of the Sacramento community in the development of the new downtown entertainment and sports complex.

Earlier this year, 400 people completed a survey on how residents envision the future of Downtown Plaza with a new entertainment and sports center via the City's Envision Sacramento website. Additionally, nearly 6,000 respondents completed an in-depth market demand study to gauge preferences on key amenities inside the arena.

"We have a real opportunity to develop a new City-owned facility that is uniquely Sacramento and a centerpiece for the entire region," said City Manager John Shirey. "To be successful, we need to capitalize on the community's continued enthusiasm by hearing suggestions on the look and feel, amenities and features of the new downtown arena."

The ESC project team includes ICON Venue Group, AECOM, construction firm Turner Construction, the Kings and the City. The project team is currently in the conceptual phase of the arena design. They will reveal updated visuals of the arena later this fall. Construction on the new ESC is expected to begin in fall 2014, with the facility targeted to open in the fall of 2016.

For more information, please visit www.kings.com and www.cityofsacramento.org.

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Kings and City Seek Community Input on Design of New ESC

Landmark 'Community Workforce Training Agreement' will ensure strong local
participation in construction of new downtown entertainment and sports complex

SACRAMENTO – Today, Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson joined Senate President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, Sacramento Kings President Chris Granger, Sacramento-Sierra Building and Construction Trades Council President Dennis Canevari and other top region and state leaders to announce the signing of the Community Workforce and Training Agreement (CWTA).

The CWTA will govern the hiring, training, and oversight of an estimated 3,000 to 3,500 on-site workers during the construction of the new downtown entertainment and sport center (ESC). Signatories to the agreement are Turner Construction and the Sacramento-Sierra Building &amp; Construction Trades Council.

As part of the CWTA, the parties agree to target hiring at least 60% of construction workers and 70% of apprentices from the City of Sacramento and surrounding region.

"Today's announcement is proof positive that business and labor stand united in their commitment to this project and its transformative economic potential for the Sacramento region," said Mayor Johnson. "The arena is first and foremost about creating jobs, and I'm thrilled to see the Kings, Turner, and Building Trades demonstrating such a strong commitment to putting our community back to work."

"The promise of Sacramento's entertainment and sports center becoming a premier project for the region can only be realized with skilled craftsmen and women constructing the arena. The value goes beyond providing solid middle-class jobs," said Steinberg. "Time and time again since the 1930's, workforce agreements have been proven to save money for taxpayers and investors through construction efficiency and high quality.  Our workers and our residents deserve nothing less."

"We are excited to reach this agreement a full year before construction begins," said Granger. "The CWTA will not only ensure that we build the best arena in the NBA on time and on budget, but also that our region fully benefits from good paying construction jobs."

"Sacramento building trades workers are some of the best trained and best equipped in the nation, and now they will play an important role in the construction of this important civic space," said Canevari. "The CWTA is a significant moment for the business-labor relations in Sacramento. During the week of Labor Day, we are proud to announce and be a part of this community partnership."

"This is a major step forward as we get ready for the construction of a new, state-of-the-art building," explained Chuck Baldwin, Project Executive for Turner Construction.  "I'm excited about today's progress and can't wait to get shovels in the ground."

Several key provisions of the CWTA seek to ensure the safe, timely, and cost-effective construction of the new entertainment and sports complex. Under the provisions of the CWTA, the building trades unions will oversee the dispatching of all on-site construction workers and be accountable for ensuring a steady supply of highly skilled and highly trained personnel. The CWTA also includes robust "no strike" and "no lockout" provisions to minimize or eliminate risks of project delays and associated cost overruns caused by labor disputes and grievances.

Through partnerships with local pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship programs, the CWTA plans to maximize participation from new and early-stage construction workers, particularly from disadvantaged communities within the Sacramento region. In addition, the CWTA outlines a partnership with the Helmets to Hardhats program – a national program that connects National Guard, Reserve, retired and transitioning active-duty military services members to training and career opportunities in the construction industry. As part of this partnership, Turner Construction will agree to make a $10,000 contribution to the Center for Military Recruitment, Assessment and Veterans.

Turner Construction is currently working with the Kings, ICON Venue Group, AECOM and City of Sacramento on the design and pre-construction phases of the project. Turner expects to break ground on the new facility in the fall of 2014 with an opening date in the fall of 2016.

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Major Jobs Agreement Reached on Construction of Downtown Arena

World-Renowned Architecture Firm Set to Transform Downtown Sacramento

SACRAMENTO – After a highly competitive process involving some of the top architectural firms in the world, the Sacramento Kings today announced AECOM has been selected as the lead architect for the downtown entertainment and sports complex.

AECOM is renowned for designing some of the most state-of-the-art sports and entertainment venues in the world. AECOM is responsible for the acclaimed London 2012 Olympic Park and is also designing the Rio 2016 Olympic Park. AECOM has served as lead architect of 11 NBA arenas, including the Barclays Center – home of the Brooklyn Nets and the 2012 Sports Business Journal Facility of the Year. Locally, AECOM designed Aggies Stadium at the University of California, Davis.

"We have assembled the best artists in the world to design and build the new arena," said Kings owner Vivek Ranadivé. "From the Bird's Nest in Beijing to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, AECOM has the resume to design and create the most technologically advanced and fan-centric arena in the world."

The Kings also selected ICON Venue Group as the project manager and Turner as the lead builder.

"We now have a world-class team in place and we look forward to developing what we believe will be an important civic space, and the loudest building in sports, right here in the heart of downtown Sacramento," said Kings President Chris Granger.

AECOM plans to have conceptual renderings ready this fall and final design completed in early to mid 2014. AECOM will do all the architectural design work in Sacramento to ensure ongoing local input in the design process.

"We are thrilled to be selected to design the new downtown arena," said Jon Niemuth, AIA, NCARB, LEED, Director of AECOM Sports, Americas. "For some of the best fans in the NBA, we are prepared to design an arena that will not only provide a tremendous home court advantage for the Kings, but that will also create an amazing experience for everyone who steps foot in and around the facility. This project will transform downtown and the entire region."

"This is another huge win for the Kings and for Sacramento," said Mayor Kevin Johnson. "AECOM's selection continues to prove that the best and brightest in the world believe in this project and in our community.  I applaud the Kings for an inspired selection and can't wait to see what AECOM designs for the new arena!"