Now that Glendale and the Arizona Coyotes have parted ways as far as the team’s ongoing tenancy at Gila River Arena is concerned, the City’s plan moving forward is to renovate the facility to make it more attractive for other events, such as concerts and other live performances.
Glendale has hired HOK to create a preliminary design. City Manager Kevin Phelps told the Arizona Republic initial designs could go to City Council as early as next month.
He estimates the renovation could cost in the $40M-$50M range. Glendale still owes $129M from the arena’s original development. A financial plan for the new project is still being worked out, but Phelps has said he hopes to avoid adding any new debt.
Project components will include improving the lighting, sound and infrastructure needed to attract live performances, which could range from concerts to non-hockey sporting events like professional rodeo. The focus will center heavily on the guest experience, upgrading amenities like food and beverage services and merchandising.
A study commissioned by Glendale found hockey games averaged $12K in sales and bed tax revenues, compared to $25K for concerts. To offset the loss of hockey games, the arena would need to book 20 more events with average attendance of 10,000. However, with hockey no longer on the schedule, more dates are available to book. (Source)
