The Key Arena of today and the Key Arena of tomorrow may look like two different buildings if one of two developers are able to convince local politicians in the Emerald City to renovate the stadium that plays host to the Seattle Storm.
April 12 was the deadline for suitors looking to give the Key a makeover to submit their proposals to the City of Seattle. It appears that there are two competing renovation ideas.
Photo Credit: Oak View Group Renderings
One is from Tim Leiweke and his Oak View Group. Leiweke’s plan has an estimate cost of $564 million and is aimed at attracting concerts as well as NBA and NHL teams to the venue.
Photo Credit: AEG/SeattleColiseum.com
There is another proposal from Anschutz Entertainment Group (which notably in its renderings includes the Storm’s logo) which would renovate Key Arena into a newly minted Seattle Coliseum. Its price tag is reported to be $520 million and would include the Storm as well as the NHL and NBA.
Both projects have a planned completion year of 2020.
Photo Credit: Sonics Arena
Then, of course, waiting in the wings is the above SoDo Arena proposal put forth by Chris Hansen. The construction of the Arena is tantamount on a stretch of a Seattle street being vacated. That vacation was voted down last year, but…
Bruce Harrell tells @IanFurnessSea that Chris Hansen’s @sonicsarena new street vacation request will be voted on by city council on Aug/Sept
— Aaron Levine (@AaronQ13Fox) April 13, 2017
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The announcement of KeyArena being a future site for NCAA tournament games may affect the renovation plans. Also, former Seattle mayor Mike McGinn, an ardent SoDo backer, recently launched a new mayoral bid to challenge incumbent Ed Murray, who critics say favors the Key over SoDo.
Another issue is where the Storm would play while Key Arena is being renovated. If it is a situation that mirrors what is happening with the Atlanta Dream, who will play the next two seasons at Georgia Tech’s McCamish Pavilion while Philips Arena is being redone, could the Alaska Airlines Arena at UW’s Hec Ed Pavilion be a possibility?
Such a move would be somewhat fitting as whenever the San Antonio Stars play the Storm, Kelsey Plum, taken first overall in this year’s draft, would be returning to the gym where she played her collegiate ball—and set records—at Washington.
In the near term, however, focus will be on getting the Key (and the city) all dressed up as it prepares to be the stage for the 2017 All Star Game in July.
Be sure to check out our Instagram page (@BeyondTheW) for behind the scenes sights and sounds from the 2017 WNBA Draft!
By: Akiem Bailum (@AkiemBailum on Twitter, Instagram)
