Ralston arena 2012

OCTOBER 14, 2012 SPECIAL SECTION

H O WA R D K . M A R C U S / T H E W O R L D - H E R A L D

Introducing the newest attraction in Ralston

BY BRYAN REDEMSKE WORLD-HERALD CORRESPONDENT

In little more than a year, the Ralston Arena has risen from bare ground to completion, ready to ring in a new era for the city.

Situated northwest of the 72nd and Q Street intersection, the $36 million arena eventually will host a wide range of activities — basketball, hockey, indoor football, trade shows, banquets, graduations and more.

“We want to have as many events as we can here,” said Ralston Mayor Don Groesser. “And if we need to, we can host three different functions at the same time.”

The Ralston Arena’s first tenants will be the University of Nebraska at Omaha men’s basketball team, the Omaha Lancers junior hockey team and the Omaha Beef indoor football team. In all, the arena is slated to host about 200 events in its first year.

The arena’s three large event spaces — the main arena, the adjacent secondary ice sheet and the banquet hall — are what make it possible to host separate events simultaneously.

The main arena seats about 4,700 for basketball, volleyball and wrestling, and about 4,000 for ice hockey. Concert capacity can go up to 5,300.

The secondary ice rink, to the south of the main arena, has a capacity of 500. The banquet room, on the east end of the arena, can seat nearly 400.

Nearly 200 club seats fill the east end of the arena, and include a private bar and waitstaff. A pair of Super Club rooms (also on the east end) each offers 18 permanent seats and dedicated waitstaff.

“These are going to be great areas for company outings and staff parties,” said Curtis Webb, arena general manager.

The arena’s three large event spaces are what make it possible to host separate events simultaneously.

Though the view from every arena seat is great, visitors will first be impressed by the view from the parking lot: more than 1,200 spaces, all free of charge. For those who don’t want to drive, a Metro bus stop is less than a block away on 72nd Street. The Big Papio and Keystone Trail systems are visible from the front door.

Convenience is the name of the game inside as well. Each corner of the main arena houses a concession stand and restrooms. Each end of the arena features a 24-by-30-foot LED video board.

Above the seating areas on each side of the arena are six more LED video boards that can display advertising, team graphics, game information and more. Ribbon-board LED panels are included in the visual package.

The concession stands will be operated by the arena’s in-house staff and feature food from Maria’s Mexican Restaurant, Famous Dave’s, Domino’s Pizza and Omaha Steaks, among others.

Groesser said the arena will offer good food at a reasonable price.

“We’ll make sure everything is priced right, and the quality is good,” he said. “We won’t have $8 or $9 beer or anything like that, either.”

Besides event concessions, the arena will house a Jittery Joe’s coffee bar, which will be open to the public every day.

The rest of the retail space will be filled by the Dugout,

Opening week events Friday » Rodney Atkins concert, 7:30 p.m.

Oct. 21 » Public open house/tours (free soda and popcorn), noon to 4 p.m. » Ralston Area Chamber of Commerce ribbon-cutting ceremony, 2 p.m. » Team meet-and-greet (Omaha Lancers, UNO Mavericks, Omaha Rollergirls), 2 p.m. » Meet the mascots, 2 p.m.

Arena: Flexible spaces are key to the venue’s success Continued from Page 2 which sells hockey equipment and licensed, team-branded apparel.

Under the concourses, the Lancers and the UNO men’s basketball team have dedicated locker rooms and facilities. Three additional locker rooms, plus six more for the auxiliary rink, will make the arena an inviting home for youth and adult hockey Don Groesser, and basketball Ralston mayor tournaments.

“The auxiliary locker rooms aren’t fancy by any means, but they’re good-sized and will make it easy for teams to get in and out,” Webb said.

In terms of efficiency and environmental impact, the building uses

“We made sure to pursue the green technologies that would allow us to save a lot of money over the life of the arena.”

geothermal heating from 60 wells that are more than 200 feet deep.

Heat given off by the ice maintenance plant is recirculated throughout the building to maintain a steady temperature. The plant will keep both rinks frozen year-round.

Taking the efficiency initiative further, urinals in the men’s restrooms feature waterless technology that will save thousands of gallons of water each year.

“We made sure to pursue the green technologies that would allow us to save a lot of money over the life of the arena,” Groesser said.

The arena was funded by a May 2011 bond referendum that Ralston residents approved overwhelmingly.

The bonds will be repaid in large part because of a 2010 law that will allow the city to keep 70 percent of sales taxes collected within 600 yards of the arena.

Unlike many other arenas, the Ralston Arena is owned and operated by the city. Groesser said he expects that the facility will employ up to 13 full-time staff and 200 parttime workers.

Ralston Arena A special section produced by the news division of the Omaha World-Herald.

Working hard

H O WA R D K . M A R C U S / T H E W O R L D - H E R A L D

Giving a tour of the arena during the final weeks of construction are, from left, Curtis Webb, Ralston Arena general manager; Lynn Higginbotham, Ralston Arena marketing director; and Ralston Mayor Don Groesser.

When accidents happen we’re ready to help!

Special sections editor: Shelley Larsen Section editor/designer: Tom Knox Copy editor: Howard K. Marcus Advertising coordinator: Stan Lewis For special section advertising information, call 402-444-1485.

Cover photos: Howard K. Marcus/The World-Herald

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Teams are ready to play

BY BRYAN REDEMSKE WORLD-HERALD CORRESPONDENT

H O WA R D K . M A R C U S / T H E W O R L D - H E R A L D

The Ralston Arena features two 24-by-30-foot LED video boards, one on each end of the arena. Above the seating areas on each side of the arena are six more LED video boards that can display advertising, team graphics, game information and more. Ribbon-board LED panels are seen here as well.

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When the Ralston Arena opens, it will welcome two tenants who have been looking for the right fit for some time — the Omaha Lancers junior hockey team and the University of Nebraska at Omaha men’s basketball team.

Both organizations have made efforts in recent years to move to a facility that better suits their respective needs.

UNO, which moved to NCAA Division I status a year ago, has most recently been playing in Sapp Fieldhouse.

The Lancers have spent the years since the Ak-Sar-Ben Coliseum closed playing in two different facilities — MidAmerica Center in Council Bluffs and the Civic Auditorium in downtown Omaha. Neither building allowed the Lancers to house all their operations — front office, practice facility and game rink — under one roof. At the Ralston Arena, the Lancers have a real home.

“We’ll have the best facility from top to bottom of any team in the league,” said Dan Fremuth, vice president of business operations for the Lancers. “We’re pretty excited about getting in there.”

When the arena project won approval, the Lancers worked with ICON Architectural Group to lay out the space to best serve the organization’s needs. Most of the space under the north-side seating area is dedicated to the team.

“They allowed us to have a lot of input on how that

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“It will be exciting to see what it’s like in there on game day.”

Derrin Hansen, head coach of UNO men’s basketball

Teams: Hockey, basketball and more Continued from Page 4 space is mapped out,” Fremuth said.

“They gave us a footprint, but we were able to work with them to determine how to use it.”

When construction is complete, the Lancers will take over and finish the project with the organization’s own touches.

“We’re going to spend quite a bit of money on our end to make everything top-notch,” Fremuth said. “We want to make sure our spaces reflect the effort and dedication that went into building this arena.”

The result will be a facility that will likely prove attractive to potential recruits. Derrin Hansen, UNO basketball coach, has already made a number of visits to the arena with recruits.

“It’s been exciting to see it coming along,” Hansen said. “And when you look at the amenities it has compared to where we’re coming from, it will be a big boost for the program. It puts us into the realm of the teams we compete with.”

Like the Lancers, UNO had input on its spaces, which include coaches’ offices, a locker room, the players’ lounge and a training room.

“We really like the space,” Hansen said. “We were able to do much more in there than we thought we’d be able to do.”

Though the Mavericks have moved off campus, student shuttle buses will be available for select games at the Ralston Arena. Though that schedule has yet to be finalized, Hansen is looking forward to the atmosphere in the new building.

“It’s going to be a great thing for students and fans alike,” he said. “It will be exciting to see what it’s like in there on game day.”

H O WA R D K . M A R C U S / T H E W O R L D - H E R A L D

The main arena seats about 4,700 for basketball, volleyball and wrestling, and about 4,000 for ice hockey. Concert capacity can go up to 5,300. Section 108 is at the west end of the arena.

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TRADITION

CONTINUES

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OPENING NIGHT! FRIDAY, OCTOBER 26, 7:05 PM RALSTON ARENA

TEAMS PLAYING AT THE ARENA » UNO MEN’S BASKETBALL » OMAHA LANCERS — HOCKEY » OMAHA BEEF — INDOOR FOOTBALL » OMAHA HEART — LINGERIE FOOTBALL » OMAHA ROLLERGIRLS — ROLLER DERBY

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FIRST LANCERS GAME AT THE BRAND NEW

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www.lancers.com FOLLOW US ON

LISTEN TO ALL LANCERS GAMES ON

“I’ve never seen anything like this come together before,” said Ralston Mayor Don Groesser of construction of the Ralston Arena.

The collective experience of four firms helped turn the initial vision into reality.

What Grand Forks, N.D.based ICON Architectural Group and Omaha-based Boyd Jones Construction brought to the project was experience.

Both firms have résumés that include projects similar to the arena.

ICON was able to design a building that can be used year-round.

“They brought the flexibility that I was looking for,” said Groesser, who added that his chief concern during the entire process was to make sure the city stayed on budget.

Boyd Jones Construction has been able to do that for Ralston. According to Groesser, the firm took ownership of the construction process.

“I was really impressed with their ability to manage the project,” he said.

Olsson Associates, a Lincoln-based engineering firm, was tapped for its engineering expertise. The company was responsible for, among other things, soil compaction and foundation creation for the arena.

Groesser said the process has been “like conducting an orchestra” — sometimes changes must be made to keep the song going. A consultant with Omaha-based P.J. Morgan Real Estate worked diligently to avoid cost overruns associated with those changes.

Whether the activity is a concert, sports event, monster truck rally or something else, Groesser wants the arena to be a venue that everyone in the metro area can enjoy.

Novelty stand

» Owner/operator: City of Ralston » Location: 7300 Q St., Ralston » Cost: Approximately $36 million

Concessions Restrooms Suites

» Architect: ICON Architectural Group, Grand Forks, N.D. » Construction: Boyd Jones Construction, Omaha » Main arena capacity: Up to 5,300 » Auxiliary rink capacity: 500

Concessions

» Banquet hall capacity: 400

Suites

» Trade show capacity: 99 booths (10-by-10 feet) » Concession stands: five permanent, many portable booths » Restrooms: 15 (six each for men and women, three unisex)

Concessions

» Parking: 1,187 standard stalls, 30 ADA stalls » Main arena scoreboards: two large video boards, each 24-by-30 feet

Arena Restrooms

» Other signage: 12 LED video boards on north and south walls of main arena, ribbon boards below video boards » Suites: 12 luxury suites » Club seating: 177 club seats, two Super Club rooms

Arena

The Dugout

W. Dodge Rd.

Dodge St.

Restrooms

Jittery Joe’s

480

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680 80

L St. Q St.

Ralston Arena

Concourse level

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BY TOM KNOX WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

RALSTON ARENA: AT A GLANCE

72nd St.

Experienced firms tackle project

Party/ corporate room

ENTRANCE

Concessions

Restrooms

Banquet hall

Banquet staging area

M AT T H A N E Y / T H E W O R L D - H E R A L D

“I’ve never seen anything like this come together before.”

H O WA R D K . M A R C U S / T H E W O R L D - H E R A L D

Ralston Mayor Don Groesser on the construction of the Ralston Arena

ENTRANCE

Arena is potential catalyst for growth “At one point, many people were curious as to what this is going to do for Ralston. But Omaha should benefit from this project as well. And we appreciate the City of Omaha’s cooperation to help get the whole project done.”

Jerry Krause, Ralston City councilman

BY BRYAN REDEMSKE

T

WORLD-HERALD CORRESPONDENT

hough the opening of the Ralston Arena marks the end of one story, Mayor Don Groesser hopes it’s just the beginning of a new chapter for the city.

He wants the multipurpose arena to serve as a magnet that can help draw new businesses and development to downtown Ralston, which is just six blocks away. Groesser envisions new restaurants, retail shops and even apartments and condos, all with easy access to not only the arena, but also to Interstate 80 and surrounding communities.

“This is an opportunity to really catapult us forward,” he said.

“This can help make our city that much better.”

The arena itself will be home to two businesses when it opens.

The Dugout, which also has a location in downtown Omaha, will sell hockey equipment and licensed team apparel. A Jittery Joe’s coffee bar will occupy a small space just inside the main arena entrance.

Farther down the street, Groesser hopes to see additional development piggybacking off the arena’s success.

Revitalization plans began several years ago with a look at the downtown area itself, followed by examinations of the Main Street corridor from 72nd Street, Country Club Road and the old granary building.

But when the opportunity for the arena popped up, it quickly took center stage.

“We thought that if we had an arena, it could help make our plans for Main Street come about,” said Ralston City Council-

man Jerry Krause. “This all fits into what we were thinking, though our plans didn’t originally include an arena.”

Now that the arena is in place, the city is considering how to use it as a starting point to realize the original revitalization goals.

To foster that development, the city is currently working on a 10-year plan that will, among other things, re-imagine Country Club Road — a six-block stretch of tree-lined street that leads to Ralston’s historic downtown. Groesser sees it as a walkway that could eventually rival downtown Omaha in terms of accessibility and atmosphere.

“It’s a really walkable distance,” Groesser said. “That’s shorter than the walk from the Old Market to the CenturyLink Center. I can see the arena and our downtown area taking on that kind of a feel.”

Though Ralston would likely reap the bulk of the benefit from added development, Omaha stands to gain from more activity along the 72nd Street corridor.

A newer strip-mall development on the east side of the intersection of 72nd and Q Streets that currently sits mostly empty will be much easier to fill with increased traffic for some 200 days each year, said Krause.

As the arena hosts more events — think multi-day youth hockey tournaments — nearby Omaha hotels will likely see increased demand.

“At one point, many people were curious as to what this is going to do for Ralston,” Krause said. “But Omaha should benefit from this project as well. And we appreciate the City of Omaha’s cooperation to help get the whole project done.”

Beneath the attractive exterior of Ralston Arena is a Ceco custom-designed steel frame that will meet the test of time.

Every detail of the frame was engineered to perform to the exacting standards required of a world-class arena.

The collaboration and partnership of designers ICON Architectural Group, Boyd Jones Construction and Ceco Building Systems translated the aspirations of the Ralston community into reality – the Ralston Arena – a structure that is Ceco Steel Strong.

Congratulations on your new arena, and thank you for allowing Ceco to be your partner.

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Ready for a fun time

P H O T O S B Y H O WA R D K . M A R C U S / T H E W O R L D - H E R A L D

Workers were wrapping up finishing touches in the final days before the Ralston Arena hosts its first public event Friday, a Rodney Atkins concert.

Grand-opening events are Oct. 21 from noon to 4 p.m. Players, coaches and mascots from the Omaha Lancers, the University of Nebraska at Omaha menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s basketball team and the Omaha Rollergirls will be at the arena for the event.

The city is asking that attendees bring nonperishable food items, which will be donated to the Open Door Mission.

Also, an Omaha Youth Hockey tournament will be played during the open house.

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Keeping it cool

Almost like flipping a switch

BY BRYAN REDEMSKE WORLD-HERALD CORRESPONDENT

H O WA R D K . M A R C U S / T H E W O R L D - H E R A L D

The room known as the “ice plant” houses the mechanicals that keep the ice cold at the Ralston Arena.

As an added measure of efficiency for the arena, heat given off by the ice maintenance plant is recirculated throughout the building to maintain a steady temperature.

The plant will keep both rinks frozen year-round.

Workers in the background were completing the job in the final weeks of construction.

Originally envisioned as a hockey arena, the design behind the Ralston Arena evolved into a year-round, multiuse facility capable of hosting everything from basketball and ice hockey to indoor football, trade shows, conventions and youth sports tournaments.

The arena is capable of hosting three different events at the same time, thanks to its design. The main bowl could host a University of Nebraska at Omaha men’s basketball game, for example, while the attached secondary ice rink has public skating and the banquet area holds a wedding reception.

“This is one of the only facilities in the Midwest with that kind of capability,” said Ralston Mayor Don Groesser. “We want it to be in use year-round.”

Though schedules for the

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The arena is capable of hosting three different events at the same time. arena’s main tenants likely won’t overlap much, it is possible that the main arena will play host to multiple events on the same day.

Should the situation arise, it will take about four hours to switch from hockey to basketball and vice-versa.

Unlike at many other multipurpose facilities, the Ralston Arena ice will stay down yearround. For non-hockey events, the ice will be covered and the protective glass that encircles the rink will be removed — though the boards will stay.

Because the ice will be covered, additional floor-level seating can be added to boost total capacity.

Though the nearly 8,000-square-foot banquet space on the east end of the arena is currently open to the main arena, it eventually will be walled off into its own facility. That will allow each event at the arena to go on without interference from the other areas.

Could you someday attend a craft show, grab some lunch, see a basketball game and then go ice-skating — all in the same building? If everything goes as planned in the new facility, it’s a possibility.

CONGRATULATIONS RALSTON!

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