Pens pick firms to oversee arena development design
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The Pittsburgh Penguins picked two firms with track records in the National Hockey League to oversee the design and construction of their new arena. ICON Venue Group, of Denver, will oversee the construction process as the owner’s representative. HOK Sport of Kansas City, Mo., a leading sports architecture firm, will design the $290 million facility, which is scheduled to open sometime during the 2009-10 season.
ICON and HOK have worked together before on similar projects, including Prudential Arena, the future home of the New Jersey Devils; the Jobing.com arena that is home to the Phoenix Coyotes; and the Pepsi Center in Denver, where the Colorado Avalanche play.
The companies also worked together on the Sprint Center in Kansas City, an arena that officials there used to try to lure the Penguins when talks on a new arena in Pittsburgh were floundering.
HOK Sport also designed arenas where the Minnesota Wild, Atlanta Thrashers, Nashville Predators, Chicago Blackhawks and Anaheim Ducks play. HOK also designed PNC Park and Heinz Field for Pittsburgh’s other two pro sports teams, the Pirates and Steelers.
AP-ES-05-16-07 2011EDT