New Arena (formerly Prairie Surf)

[btmec]

https://venuesnow.com/dont-forget-co...new-okc-arena/

In that article they say the Thunder relocated from Vancouver. The writer spent enough time researching the arena but didn't see the team moved from Seattle? They are correct and it goes along with what I said above. If OKC wants to get really big concerts we need more seats. This will most likely be the last arena I ever see built in OKC and I want it to be something special.

[Urbanized]

I'm in LA now, not for the Thunder game but watching it on Kodi so I can see local commentators instead of the Clippers. Anyway, yesterday I went to Costco to pickup some food for a BBQ and I drove by the new Clippers arena. Wow, that place is nice. OKC needs to look at what they have done. They've created a complete fan experience...

Well, you’re in luck. OKC already IS looking at what was done at Intuit Dome; in fact they were there yesterday and for the game last night.

If you watched the broadcast closely last night you’d have spotted OKC’s mayor sitting courtside. He was in LA with other City officials, representatives from the Thunder ownership and front office, ASM management and others to tour Intuit and experience a game there as a benchmark.

Luckily for them it was the same night as yet another Thunder win, rendering the Clippers STILL winless in their new building.

They’ve also visited other stadiums and arenas recently in order to explore current best practices for planning, constructing and programming facilities like our new arena. This building is a moon shot for OKC and they’re rightly treating it as such.

[floyd the barber]

Maybe I am too much of a traditionalist, but I would prefer a stadium with box suites all around the stadium. The Clippers arena looks goofy.

I do not like it.

[Urbanized]

^^^^^^^^^
I don’t think there’s any danger of the City building a copy of Intuit Dome; in fact it would be fully impossible to duplicate a $2 billion building with OKC’s ~$1 billion project budget.

OKC is looking at multiple recent buildings - including non-basketball ones like Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas - to determine which current sports and entertainment facility best practices make the most sense for implementation here, while using the relatively modest (these days) budget set aside for the OKC arena.

[Pete]

The Intuit Dome was $2 billion, not $4B. And a big chunk of that was spent on making the entire place carbon neutral.

Chase Center (in the middle of SF) was $1.4 billion. Barclays in Brooklyn was $1 billion. No other arenas have cost more than $1B.

The FiServ Arena in Milwaukee -- which is a great facility -- cost $514 million.


Well over $1 billion will be spent on OKC's new arena -- all on construction as the land is totally free. In no way is ours a 'modest budget'.

[Urbanized]

The Intuit Dome was $2 billion, not $4B..'.

Yeah, I’d already fixed that error.

But yes, these days $1 billion is by no means a big budget for such a facility. It qualifies as modest. Not cheap, but not over-the-top by any measure.

[Urbanized]

To add on to this, Fiserv was opened in 2018. A full decade and a financial lifetime before the hoped-for 2028 opening of OKC’s. It’s an apples-and-oranges comparison, Pete.

Chase was 2019. Barclays was 2012. Impossible to fairly compare these buildings to OKC’s from a cost standpoint.

[Pete]

To add on to this, Fiserv was opened in 2018. A full decade and a financial lifetime before the hoped-for 2028 opening of OKC’s. It’s an apples-and-oranges comparison, Pete.

Regardless, in no world is a $1B+ budget with free land considered modest.

[Urbanized]

^^^^^^^^^^
You’re arguing semantics. If you built Fiserv, Chase or Barclays today AS IS they would all be WELL over $1 billion.

[Pete]

^^^^^^^^^^
You’re arguing semantics. If you built Fiserv, Chase or Barclays today AS IS they would all be WELL over $1 billion.

Just admit you were wrong.

Those are the best the NBA has to offer and the OKC arena will also be well over $1B when all is said and done.

So, there is no way our budget is modest -- it will yield a facility on par with absolutely anything, except, perhaps, the way over-the-top Intuit Dome.

[Urbanized]

Barclays cost a billion dollars in 2012, (at least) SIXTEEN YEARS before OKC’s arena will open.

[Urbanized]

Just admit you were wrong.

Those are the best the NBA has to offer and the OKC arena will also be well over $1B when all is said and done.

So, there is no way our budget is modest -- it will yield a facility on par with absolutely anything, except, perhaps, the way over-the-top Intuit Dome.

LOL, I’m definitely NOT wrong.

I’m not suggesting OKC’s building won’t be world class; it most certainly will be. But going forward I can’t imagine that you’ll ever again see an NBA building constructed for less than a billion. Most will probably be closer to Inuit’s total than Barclays.

And using pricing from a decade ago as comparison data is the definition of unfair, considering the inflationary intervening era.

[Pete]

Reminder of the current budget:

$976MM minimum estimated sales tax collection (per OKC)
$75MM MAPS 4
$50MM Owners

That's more than $1.1B *minimum* and based on past sales tax collections, I estimate that number will grow by at least another $125 million and probably more. So, at least $1.2B+. That is not counting whatever ground lease money is generated by the commercial development on the block, which is required to go back to the arena.

Plus, completely free land, the cheapest construction labor market in all of the NBA, and no doubt tons more things the City will throw in, like street improvements, utilities etc. Wouldn't be surprised it the City ends up paying for the parking component as well as demoliton.

[G.Walker]

$1.1B is more enough to build a top of the line arena in Oklahoma City. Hoping the arena will have self-service amenities, supported by AI technology. Once built it will be the newest arena in the NBA. There are no other current teams planning to build a new arena.

[bison34]

I just hope the acoustics are top-notch. I bet they will be.

[Urbanized]

$1.1B is more enough to build a top of the line arena in Oklahoma City. Hoping the arena will have self-service amenities, supported by AI technology. Once built it will be the newest arena in the NBA. There are no other current teams planning to build a new arena.

Yes, of course it should be more than enough. Especially in OKC, and especially with - as Pete pointed out - the City already owning the land.

My original point, before it was hijacked over semantics and unnecessary disagreement, was that we weren’t getting something as over-the-top elaborate as Intuit, which was the concern of the poster I was replying to. We will surely have one of the best arenas in the league. In no way “budget,” or “cheap,” (as was the building now known as Paycom), but definitely delivered for an amount that is modest and reasonable by today’s standards, ESPECIALLY by comparison to Intuit.

[April in the Plaza]

Maybe I am too much of a traditionalist, but I would prefer a stadium with box suites all around the stadium. The Clippers arena looks goofy.

I do not like it.

i wonder how much demand this MSA really has for corporate suites. sure, there is probably demand for significantly more boxes in the new arena, relative to what is in paycom now.

but i'd hate to see us get rid of too many seats in favor of boxes that the city/team struggles to sell.

[Laramie]

i wonder how much demand this MSA really has for corporate suites. sure, there is probably demand for significantly more boxes in the new arena, relative to what is in paycom now.

but i'd hate to see us get rid of too many seats in favor of boxes that the city/team struggles to sell.

We need space in the new arena to expand suites and boxes in the future. Not so much concerned about having a smaller seating arena for sellouts; but one where you have enough seating to accommodate ticket demand. I'll continue to say that our new arena should have a minimum 18,500 seating capacity.

Doesn't seem to me that Metro OKC is getting more corporately stronger; however what we do have here in Oklahoma
is a solid energy and water sources to support incoming firms that want to establish a presence in our state for future growth and expansion.

[G.Walker]

Yes, of course it should be more than enough. Especially in OKC, and especially with - as Pete pointed out - the City already owning the land.

My original point, before it was hijacked over semantics and unnecessary disagreement, was that we weren’t getting something as over-the-top elaborate as Intuit, which was the concern of the poster I was replying to. We will surely have one of the best arenas in the league. In no way “budget,” or “cheap,” (as was the building now known as Paycom), but definitely delivered for an amount that is modest and reasonable by today’s standards, ESPECIALLY by comparison to Intuit.

For what it's worth the Intuit Dome is an exception, $2B is no way an NBA standard for an arena. It was built to that level with extra amenities due to it hosting events for the 2028 Olympics, so there's that.

[dankrutka]

I went to the Thunder-Clippers game on Saturday at the Intuit Dome, and there's a lot OKC can learn from the arena even if the price points are different. Here's some main points:

- Intuit Dome App: To attend the game you have to download the Intuit Dome app and provide them a bevy of information, including biometric data. Every person (unless a minor) has to have the app. It's the worst experience I've ever had related to attending a sporting event. Completing all the components of the app required 3-4 hours, primarily because it didn't work. For example, it took 1 hour alone just to get a confirmation code for my wife to create an account. After one hour, she received like 25 confirmation codes all at once. The app is also incredibly invasive and even requires creating a CLEAR account, taking pictures, uploading your driver's license. I had already bought the tickets or I would have opted out. I felt very violated, but I guess I should have expected it from a big tech guy like Balmer.
- Entry: I've been to hundreds of NBA games and this was by far the worst lines to get into the venue. One woman in front of us had to go through security around 15 times. It was going off for every woman seemingly. Also, bags had to be under 4 inches wide or something really tiny, which is ridiculous for women who may have essentials they need to carry. A Clippers season ticket holder said every game has been a mess. Maybe they'll get it figured it out as it's only the fourth home game.
- Arena: The arena is open air, really clean, and efficient. I won't rehash all of Balmer's decisions for making it a great basketball arena, but I think he largely succeeded. You can see the Halo videoboard from most of the concourse so you don't have to miss the game when going up to get food/drink. Some food/drink options are basically in the arena, and others are outside of it (all of OKC's are outside). You access the food/drinks from stores where you just go in, get your items, and walk out. An employee just has to take the lid off of drinks. It was very quick and easy. But, at the same time, very impersonal. There are a lot of bathrooms so I never waited in line. The arena is very steep, which means that the seats in the back don't feel that far from the court. The Halo videoboard is huge and impressive. However, it kind of restricts your ability to see the rest of the arena. Your view is always of both the videoboard and the court, which I didn't love. After you get over how impressive the graphics are on the Halo, I thought it was kind of unnecessary. I should add that I don't like giant videoboards like this one and the one at JerryWorld because you end up watching them—often unintentionally—more than the game at time. I prefer the Thunder's videoboard to the Halo personally. Finally, I'll add that the Wall of rowdy Clippers fans was definitely cool and I'd love to see OKC do the same thing. It definitely helps create a good environment. Having said that, the crowd was generally quiet and there were a couple thousand empty seats. The fans were drastically inferior to OKC fans.
Area: It was a bit of hike for me to get out to the arena in Inglewood and isn't a lot of stuff to do when you walk outside the arena. OKC's arena should be much better integrated into a walkable downtown environment.

Regarding the app and entry, the lesson is, don't get too cute with things. Tech doesn't improve everything. In fact, tech can often degrade the experience. While the Intuit Dome is technologically impressive, I don't think it actually created a better experience of the game on the whole. I think OKC should consider a steeper arena, a Wall type fan section, and a concourse where you can still see the game. But OKC can also make the arena interact with the surrounding environment. In other words, OKC's arena may not have some features of Intuit, but that doesn't mean a Thunder home game can't provide a better overall experience than a Clippers home game.

[BoulderSooner]

I went to the Thunder-Clippers game on Saturday at the Intuit Dome, and there's a lot OKC can learn from the arena even if the price points are different. Here's some main points:

- Intuit Dome App: To attend the game you have to download the Intuit Dome app and provide them a bevy of information, including biometric data. Every person (unless a minor) has to have the app. It's the worst experience I've ever had related to attending a sporting event. Completing all the components of the app required 3-4 hours, primarily because it didn't work. For example, it took 1 hour alone just to get a confirmation code for my wife to create an account. After one hour, she received like 25 confirmation codes all at once. The app is also incredibly invasive and even requires creating a CLEAR account, taking pictures, uploading your driver's license. I had already bought the tickets or I would have opted out. I felt very violated, but I guess I should have expected it from a big tech guy like Balmer.
- Entry: I've been to hundreds of NBA games and this was by far the worst lines to get into the venue. One woman in front of us had to go through security around 15 times. It was going off for every woman seemingly. Also, bags had to be under 4 inches wide or something really tiny, which is ridiculous for women who may have essentials they need to carry. A Clippers season ticket holder said every game has been a mess. Maybe they'll get it figured it out as it's only the fourth home game.
- Arena: The arena is open air, really clean, and efficient. I won't rehash all of Balmer's decisions for making it a great basketball arena, but I think he largely succeeded. You can see the Halo videoboard from most of the concourse so you don't have to miss the game when going up to get food/drink. Some food/drink options are basically in the arena, and others are outside of it (all of OKC's are outside). You access the food/drinks from stores where you just go in, get your items, and walk out. An employee just has to take the lid off of drinks. It was very quick and easy. But, at the same time, very impersonal. There are a lot of bathrooms so I never waited in line. The arena is very steep, which means that the seats in the back don't feel that far from the court. The Halo videoboard is huge and impressive. However, it kind of restricts your ability to see the rest of the arena. Your view is always of both the videoboard and the court, which I didn't love. After you get over how impressive the graphics are on the Halo, I thought it was kind of unnecessary. I should add that I don't like giant videoboards like this one and the one at JerryWorld because you end up watching them—often unintentionally—more than the game at time. I prefer the Thunder's videoboard to the Halo personally. Finally, I'll add that the Wall of rowdy Clippers fans was definitely cool and I'd love to see OKC do the same thing. It definitely helps create a good environment. Having said that, the crowd was generally quiet and there were a couple thousand empty seats. The fans were drastically inferior to OKC fans.
Area: It was a bit of hike for me to get out to the arena in Inglewood and isn't a lot of stuff to do when you walk outside the arena. OKC's arena should be much better integrated into a walkable downtown environment.

Regarding the app and entry, the lesson is, don't get too cute with things. Tech doesn't improve everything. In fact, tech can often degrade the experience. While the Intuit Dome is technologically impressive, I don't think it actually created a better experience of the game on the whole. I think OKC should consider a steeper arena, a Wall type fan section, and a concourse where you can still see the game. But OKC can also make the arena interact with the surrounding environment. In other words, OKC's arena may not have some features of Intuit, but that doesn't mean a Thunder home game can't provide a better overall experience than a Clippers home game.

thank you for the review

[Pete]

Just FYI, there is a ton of new development directly north of Intuit (on the same property as the amazing SoFi Stadium) with a lot more to come.

There is a luxury 12-screen movie theater and a Cosm, the sports bar with the massive immersive screen, a brewery, coffee place, etc. They will eventually have over 100 restaurants and retail stores. There is also a large casino, as this was the former site of Hollywood Park racetrack. There is Youtube Theater, which holds 6,000 and a permanent Farmer's Market.

The entire square mile is being built up around the stadium and The Forum is still there too. It's all an easy walk across Century Blvd. and adjacent to oceans of parking for Intuit, The Forum, Youtube, and SoFi. It's a very cool development with housing and hotels as well.

[dankrutka]

Yup, no question, but the casino, for example, doesn’t feel “walkable” as there’s a busy street and big wall barriers between the arena and the casino. As someone who doesn’t know the area well, it just wasn’t obvious where I’d walk to before/after a game. But, yeah, I know there’s a lot more development coming in that area.

[Pete]

Yup, no question, but the casino, for example, doesn’t feel “walkable” as there’s a busy street and big wall barriers between the arena and the casino. As someone who doesn’t know the area well, it just wasn’t obvious where I’d walk to before/after a game. But, yeah, I know there’s a lot more development coming in that area.

It's all just so new and a lot of it is still under construction.

That area will soon have more to offer than all of downtown OKC.

[bison34]

It's all just so new and a lot of it is still under construction.

That area will soon have more to offer than all of downtown OKC.

I don't think we should compare Inglewood to downtown OKC. There are more people in a 5 mile radius of that area than most, if not all, of OKC.

Not sure why someone tried to earlier.