Paycom Center (formerly Chesapeake Arena)

[BoulderSooner]

The new entrance is pretty slick. there are two new pretty large bars/restaurants. didn't get any pics though

only one of them is new the Old #7 was there last season

[Richard at Remax]

Im not referring to the old #7. there were two different entrances with two different hostess stands. one entrance was in the atrium and called the Center Court Grill which had a very nice menu. The other was one open to the concouse (like old #7) with a side entrance as well and it was called the Center Court Carvery where they also had a bar, high tables, and the carving station that was there last year.

[Pete]

Photos from metro:

[skanaly]

Is there going to be sign that goes up on top of that silver cover over the doors?

[dankrutka]

Yeah. It looks very nice, but a little too plain. Some signage might help...

[Pete]

The original plans called for a sign:

[HOT ROD]

too bad the real thing didn't turn out like the rendering.

to me, the new building looks like they tried to copy elements from Tulsa's BOK - like a 'me too' approach. The rendering was original and the clear and green glass fit the rest of the building better than this cool blue glass and BOK duct tape facade paneling. ...

Still, Go OKC and go Thunder!

[Rover]

This looks nothing like the BOK Center.

Actually the design is clean and very nice for an add on. Doesn't need a bunch of signs and stuff to junk it up. A small one like the original rendering might be okay, but the new name is ALOT more letters than Ford and wouldn't have the same aesthetic effect as the original rendering.

[jn1780]

I bet there's going to be a Chesapeake sign somewhere on that side of the building.

Edit: I think they just haven't put up a sign yet unless they changed the plans. I doubt it though since the point is for the sign to be visible from the boulevard.


Rendering from Chesapeake Energy naming announcement

In the renderings , I like the Chesapeake sign a whole lot better than the plain block letter Ford Center sign. Don't know how it would look in actuality though.

[HOT ROD]

i didn't say it looks like BOK, I said it looks like they tried to copy ELEMENTS from BOK and it is clear the addition looks NOTHING like the original and not much like the rendering (which did look like it would fit with the original building).

I also said this was my opinion, having not yet seen the addition in-person. Please learn to read before you blatantly slam down other's posts like you're mr know-it-all.

[Rover]

Since the rendering is an illustration it actually is a pretty faithful representation of what we got. Renderings never look like the real pictures. There are a couple of slight deviations, but again, until the actual drawings are done, that is entirely normal.

And I am not sure what BOK elements are the same or near BOK.

Sorry you are so sensitive to remarks. Didn't mean to hurt your feelings.

[Larry OKC]

too bad the real thing didn't turn out like the rendering.

to me, the new building looks like they tried to copy elements from Tulsa's BOK - like a 'me too' approach. The rendering was original and the clear and green glass fit the rest of the building better than this cool blue glass and BOK duct tape facade paneling. ...

Still, Go OKC and go Thunder!

I am one of the first ones to bring it up when the renderings don't match what we got. But in this case, it was close enough that I didn't notice the glass color change etc. The only thing I saw missing was in one round of renderings, there was supposed to have been a huge led screen (over the entrance) and now that is missing (presumably because of cost/shortage of revenue). And I am not seeing the BOK thing either. Can you be specific??

[Bellaboo]

I am one of the first ones to bring it up when the renderings don't match what we got. But in this case, it was close enough that I didn't notice the glass color change etc. The only thing I saw missing was in one round of renderings, there was supposed to have been a huge led screen (over the entrance) and now that is missing (presumably because of cost/shortage of revenue). And I am not seeing the BOK thing either. Can you be specific??

I imagine it's because they put up a very large screen on the northwest corner of the arena fronting Reno, no need for two screens.

[Larry OKC]

bellaboo: that may be but the one they did put up doesn't seem near as large and they are losing out on the additional advertsing revenue the team would receive by having multiples. Do they only have one screen inside the Arena?

Also, I don't mind the color shift from green to blue. Seems more appropriate for the Peake and would have gone well with the blue Ford logo too.

[jn1780]

Yeah, Its a shame people wont get to enjoy the nice flickering glow of an advertising screen from the park. Lol
I hope they don't try to put up led screens on the south side of the new convention center.

[ljbab728]

Yeah, Its a shame people wont get to enjoy the nice flickering glow of an advertising screen from the park. Lol
I hope they don't try to put up led screens on the south side of the new convention center.

I have absolutely no problem with that. The Myriad Gardens is not a quiet suburban park. It's a very active urban park. People who don't want to see lights need to go to Lincoln Park or Earlywine.

[Jchaser405]

I think it would be fun to be able to watch the games and other events from the park. Thunder alley part II but better planned.

[Praedura]

Groovy!

[Praedura]

KFOR has an article up about the arena renovations

“The Peake” wraps construction in time for Thunder season | KFOR.com

Pretty brief, but it does include a few pics:

Exterior



Center Court Grill

[CaptDave]

Hopefully the street sweeper will come through. It looks like the aftermath of the zombie apocalypse someone mentioned earlier. Getting the debris from the Crosstown demo will help a lot.

[Praedura]

You know, when the Thunder played a pre-season game in Wichita, I noticed that the Intrust building had a similar look to it as our arena:



But I like the dark banding at the top better. Does anyone else think that the "Peake" would look better if the banding on the top was made dark as well?

[ChaseDweller]

That new entrance needs some kind of signage. It's too generic.

[betts]

I think now that it's finished, the trim on the Peake looks considerably better than I thought it did during construction. And, I think it looks better in person than in the above photos. Also, the debris in the foreground of the picture is from demolition of the Crosstown. It's not going to look considerably better until the boulevard is finished.

[Rover]

You know, when the Thunder played a pre-season game in Wichita, I noticed that the Intrust building had a similar look to it as our arena:



But I like the dark banding at the top better. Does anyone else think that the "Peake" would look better if the banding on the top was made dark as well?

I went to the game in Wichita last week. It was my first time at the Intrust Arena, though I had driven by a number of times. I think that it is a very nice arena, but anyone who doesn't appreciate the difference between it and what we now needs to go see it. There is quite a difference on the inside especially. As for the outside, I think I actually prefer ours by a fair margin. Ours looks like a higher quality building even on the outside. This isn't a knock on the Intrust Arena...it is quite nice for a mid tier city. There are some similarities though to the exterior design and ours. I still prefer ours.

[dankrutka]

I went to the game at Intrust last week also and I was surprised by how nice it is. Having said that, it does not compare to the Peake with the upgrades...