The media was invited for a tour Wednesday of the new $100-million arena that is expected to revitalize Moncton’s downtown core.
The arena boasts 8,800 fixed seats, another 1.500 for concerts and two possible stage setups. One is in the centre of the venue and the other at the end, where retractable seats fold away to create extra space.
There are 13 concession stands and 16 luxury suites. The dressing room area is designed to allow for one large space, or it can be divided into four smaller rooms with the use of garage-type doors. In all, there could be up to eight dressing rooms.
Contractors are now starting to cross off some of the major installation milestones.
“The seats have been installed. We're just doing our inspections, making sure everything is installed correctly. Right now we're scheduled to see the score clock arrive on site at the beginning of February,” says construction manager Serge Martin.
Martin says construction has gone smoothly and crews are slightly ahead of scheduled. But he says there are always a few minor hiccups.
“There's always a few plugs that are not installed in the right place, but we have my quality control crew on site. They're doing their job to do the inspections,” says Rouselle.
The City of Moncton was given a $1.1-million donation from Monctonians Jon and Leslie Manship on Tuesday. The funds are earmarked for the plaza area outside the arena to be named for the late Ian Fowler.
“He is really the essence behind all of the major events that we've attracted to Moncton, so quite a symbolic moment yesterday for the entire community. We're really proud to have them on board,” says Isabelle LeBlanc, spokesperson for the city.
The plaza will include a skating surface in the winter that turns into basketball courts and a small concert venue in the summer.
The entire project is set for completion in July 2018, with a grand opening scheduled for September.
With files from CTV Atlantic’s Jonathan MacInnis.
