Charlotte, NBA team to open new arena
(AP)
Updated: 2005-10-20 09:17

With a brick, glass and steel exterior, the building aims to evoke both Charlotte's roots in the industrial South and the present-day banking towers that dominate the city's skyline.

"We were not looking for an icon building, but for one that was beautiful, hopefully, and fit in with the city, " said architect Doug Brown of the Kansas City, Mo., firm of Ellerbe Becket.

Inside, allusions to Charlotte and the Carolinas are thick. A massive mural inside the building's main entrance plaza off Trade Street looks at the history of basketball in the Piedmont; artwork on the upper concourse surveys Charlotte's history from the 18th century to the present. The "Pit Stop BBQ" stand alludes to the region's ties to stock-car racing, while a "Flight Deck" food and beverage area pays homage to the Wright Brothers' first flight at Kitty Hawk.

Two levels of luxury suites ring the lower bowl of the arena. A fine-dining restaurant at the suite level along one baseline will allow patrons to eat dinner while they watch a game or a concert.

Gone are the glass windows that often front luxury suites, with the seats pushed onto terraces in front of the main suite space. The aim was to "make the suite fans part of the crowd," Ellerbe Becket architect Susan Fulton said.

The arena also has outdoor terrace with skyline views, and the upper concourse also has an elevated stage for musical performances and a play space for kids.

Bobcats players weren't forgotten, either. The team's practice court is part of the arena complex and the players-only area includes a theater with a 60-inch plasma screen, a lounge, a state-of-the-art hydrotherapy center and a soothingly lit locker room.

A dominant feature is the massive scoreboard. Four 16-by-28-foot LED video screens hang over center court, topped by a wraparound three-dimensional sculpture of the Charlotte skyline.