New Cincinnati arena: Here are the 8 sites where it might be built
This is part of The Enquirer's Future of Downtown series. Scroll to the bottom to vote on where you think a new arena should go.
Since the first rendering of a new arena that could replace the 48-year-old Heritage Bank Center popped up in March, speculation has been building over where it could be built.
Now we have eight options and a tentative timeline for construction.
Visit Cincy, the region's convention and tourism bureau, has put together a list of sites in and around downtown Cincinnati where a 16,000- to 18,000-person arena could fit.
The Enquirer obtained a presentation from the organization that detailed the sites under review and what it would take for the city to conduct an independent feasibility study on the cost and construction of a future arena in Cincinnati. Chairman Jeff Berding, who also co-owns and serves as co-CEO of FC Cincinnati, announced late last spring that he was pushing for the city to complete a study by the end of this year.
"When we're doing big infrastructure projects like this, you have to have buy-in from the public sector," Berding told The Enquirer. "I believe there is the wherewithal for the city and county to step forward and see that this feasibility study happens because, ultimately, if there's going to be an arena, there's going to be public involvement."
Here are the eight sites up for consideration:
West End Site: South of TQL Stadium on Ezzard Charles Drive and West Central Parkway.
Downtown East Site: North of the Hard Rock Casino Cincinnati between Gilbert Avenue and Reading Road.
Heritage Bank Center Site: On the original site of the Heritage Bank Center at Broadway and Pete Rose Way.
Queensgate Site: On the lot currently housing the historic Longworth Hall building at Gest Street and Pete Rose Way.
Convention Center South Site: South of the Duke Energy Convention Center between Fourth and Fifth streets and Plum and Elm streets.
P&G Headquarters North Site: North of P&G's Central Building spanning Sycamore Street between Sixth and Seventh streets.
Millennium Hotel Site 1: On the site of the former Millennium Hotel on Elm Street between Fifth and Sixth streets.
Millennium Hotel Site 2: On the site of the former Millennium Hotel on Elm Street between Fifth and Seventh streets.
West End development triggers revelations
Much of this information emerged as a result of a city plan to sell a crumbling garage in the West End. Developers put in proposals and Visit Cincy countered by suggesting that the city leave the site open so the feasibility study can be completed before a decision is made.
The reviewed site is just south of TQL Stadium, next to the headquarters of CET Studios and Cincinnati Public Radio, home of WVXU-FM (91.7) and WGUC-FM (90.9). (The radio station is building a new headquarters in Evanston.)
"Our interest here is that this is an important piece of land in downtown Cincinnati," added Julie Calvert, CEO and president of Visit Cincy. "When you look at all the development around the stadium, that piece of land is prime development site and it deserves to have a good look through a feasibility study to determine what's the best development to go there."
The proposed feasibility study would determine which of these eight locations, including the West End site, makes the most sense.
"Whether that's the best site remains to be seen," Berding said. "Neither I nor Visit Cincy are advocating that's where the arena should go. We are advocating that this is a great site and it shouldn't be taken off the table until an arena feasibility study is completed."
A timeline for building the new arena
Construction on the new arena could start as early as February 2026 and wrap up by June 2028. Visit Cincy hopes to take the completed feasibility study before the city and the public in the first half of next year.
More details on the possible size and look of the new arena
Calvert, Berding and the Visit Cincy team have already identified the project team:
Machete Group, a Houston-based firm that built TQL Stadium, will manage the development. The sports facility advisory group also developed FC Cincinnati's Mercy Health Training Center in Milford and completed the 19,000-person Barclays Center in Brooklyn in 2012.
Global sports architecture firm Populous, also known for TQL Stadium and the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, will design the new arena for Cincinnati.
Building what's best for the city, the West End
If built in the West End, the arena would be one of a handful of projects slated for the city center's west side, several of which are on Central Parkway. That includes FC Cincinnati's $300 million mixed-use district, which will open in 2026.
"Central Parkway is a bit of a moving target," said Mayor Aftab Pureval, " ... so from my perspective, I want to make sure that whatever goes there is best for the West End, best for the city. I don't want to rush into a decision."
As for West End locals, many are excited about the arena idea and the opportunities it could bring, according to West End Community Council's vice president Noah O'Brien. "As a resident a block away, I recognize that there will be some personal inconveniences but I also think that an arena on that site could benefit the entire region, city, and the West End as a whole," he said.
Who would build a new arena and how much will it cost?
That's a big question. Before a financing plan can be determined, an entity has to step forward, whether it's a company or a government, to build and own the arena. So far, that hasn't happened.
Huntington Bank has expressed interest in helping fund the project, as have other companies and organizations, according to Visit Cincy's submission to the city. Berding said he is "confident there are private interests who would be interested in operating and owning [an arena]."
Visit Cincy estimates the new arena will cost nearly twice the amount of TQL Stadium, which means it could be built for upwards of $500 million, and its economic impact could be approximately $300 million.
The Cincinnati Cyclones, the city's minor league ice hockey team, would not be the anchor tenant for a new arena, according to Berding, but they would play there. The plan is instead to build a multipurpose sports venue, he said, similar to Kansas City's T-Mobile Center, which was built in 2007 without a sports team attached as a permanent leaseholder. Today, that project would cost $462 million.
Including Cyclones games, a new arena could hold between 75 and 125 events annually, according to the Visit Cincy presentation.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: What is happening with a new arena for Cincinnati?
