Story by Alan Snel Photos by J. Tyge O’Donnell
The new 6,000-person arena in Henderson is the home of the minor league team for the Vegas Golden Knights. So let’s just say there’s quite a bit of a medieval theme going on in the building at 200 South Green Valley Parkway, not too far from the popular District shopping area.
The suites at Dollar Loan Center arena are referred to as “chambers,” for example, and if you want to avoid walking stairs you will hop a ride on a “hoist,” or an elevator. Club level = “royal landing.” There will be a castle where emcees, cheerleaders and game actors do their thing — just like at T-Mobile Arena.
You get the medieval picture here. The venue in the high-traffic area made worse by the current local road construction is kind of a scaled-down T-Mobile Arena.
The Henderson arena is a mere month away from its first ticketed event — the Big West college basketball tournament, just one of five college hoops tourneys that will come to Las Vegas this March.
After the first Big West hoops game on March 8, Bill Foley’s sports/entertainment operation’s Knight Hawks of the Indoor Football League play their first game March 18. When you own an arena, it’s all about finding programming — like creating your own sports team.
Then on April 2, the Henderson Silver Knights — the Triple A feeder team to the parent VGK franchise — play their first game in the venue. Interestingly enough, the Henderson Silver Knights will play in this arena in Henderson, while the “Vegas” Knight Hawks will also play in the same arena in Henderson.
This $84 million building is costing the city of Henderson $42 million — matched by Foley’s $42 million. It’s on the site of the old Henderson Pavilion. You’d think for contributing $42 million in public money toward building the arena, the city of Henderson would get to host the “Henderson” Knight Hawks. But it’s the Vegas Knight Hawks, which goes to show, we suppose, that $42 million just doesn’t go as far as it used to.
VGK President Kerry Bubolz Monday provided a tour of the arena, including the premium seating options. In all, there are 28 suites– 20 standard suites that each hold 14 fans, another four large suites for 19 fans each and four party suites in the venue’s corners that can hold 29 people each.
The Foley sports and entertainment operation is selling the 14-person suites for $128,000 a year for all arena events including the Silver Knights hockey games, but these suites require a five-year commitment. So, if you have $640,000 handy, the Foley sales folks would love to talk with you.
As for the four big party suites, those are sold per event. Bubolz did not have a price for those, but the suite cost will vary based on the event.
The arena even includes standing room only places for fans, including two high-level spaces that jut out in the corners of one end of the ice just like at T-Mobile Arena. At Dollar Home Center, each of those places will contain 15 to 20 fans each.
The arena is targeting the family demographic. So after noticing families and kids bicycling in the area on trails, the Foley group installed enough bicycle racks to secure 100 bicycles for the 6,000-person arena — an impressive number when you consider a giant venue like 62,000-seat Allegiant Stadium only has two sets of six bicycle racks.
While T-Mobile Arena has its plaza, Dollar Loan Center has a “tilt yard” — a word that means place where jousts take place.
Like we mentioned, the Foley folks take this medieval jargon very seriously at the arena.
This “tilt yard” outside the building will be a place to hold mini-concerts, farmers markets and pre-event “activations” (sponsors’ tents).
The Foley sports group is working on selling a naming rights deal to a company for this plaza-like area outside the venue.
Joining the Bubolz arena tour was none other than Chuck Brennan, the CEO of the Dollar Loan Center business that bought the naming rights to the building.
Brennan said no loans will be generated at the arena, but there will be plenty of chances for promotional company “activations,” as the sports-business folks like to call them. For example, Brennan, who speaks in a smooth radio voice and does his own radio spots, noted there will be a VIP space for Dollar Loan customers and even a $100,000 screen showing company promotions.
Brennan will have one of the four large suites that each holds 19 guests.
Even media members, Brennan noted, can come and visit his suite, or “chamber,” in the medieval parlance of the building.
“You’re always welcome as long as we get positive words,” he said, laughing. Brennan delivered that line like a joke, but you get the sense he really meant it.