This month, the city of Orlando celebrated the grand opening of the new $480 million Amway Center, which replaced and is nearly three times the size of Amway Arena built two decades ago in 1989.
Shortly afterwards the Orlando Sentinel claimed Magic GM Otis Smith called it "the best building in North America," and he was outdone by NBA commissioner David Stern saying, "There is nothing better than this facility in the world."
In cities like Seattle, Sacramento, Kansas City, St Louis, Milwaukee and Las Vegas, the question is: How did this project get done?
During the years when Howard Schultz was attempting to convince skeptical lawmakers in Washington state to build a new facility for the Sonics in spite of Key Arena’s barely-dried paint, in Orlando city leaders were far more receptive. Plans were being finalized to build a new “events center” that would seat 18,500 people in the new 875,000 square foot facility.
It's hailed as the most technologically advanced building on the continent, boasts eight levels, and among the center's many amenities are bars, restaurants, ...
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Article written by Phil Caldwell
Orlando Raises The Bar in NBA’s Cold War for New Arenas and Revenue Streams
October 30th, 2010 by Phil Caldwell Leave a reply »
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