Developer Taylor Gets To Work On Making Arena A Reality
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) - A day after a monumental City Council vote in favor of the downtown arena project moving forward, the developer overseeing the project says he's now confident the facility will be built.
"I think the odds are really good, over 50-50 into the 90-95 range," David Taylor said from his office in Sacramento on Wednesday.
Taylor was in council chambers for the historic vote Tuesday might. Wednesday, he was back at the office beginning the task of turning the arena ideas into reality.
"This is the period where all the creativity will come to bear, in the next three to five, six months," he said.
The first checks on this $391 million project will likely start rolling out next month - $13 million worth of predevelopment money from the city and private side, setting the stage for the arena's design against the rustic railyards.
"You don't want to necessarily just plop down an arena thy has red and yellow brick all over it and arches and all that and a red tile roof," Taylor said of blending the railyards with the arena. "You may want to go all glass to distinguish it from the truly historic buildings around it, because they are very historic."
The preliminary arena pictures released last week may look nothing like the actual building once finished.
The arena will fit snugly, between Interstate 5 , the old railyards buildings and an emerging transportation hub.
Taylor says he looked at the New York Knicks' Madison Square Garden, which was recently renovated, as a comparison.
"I visited Madison Square Garden last April, and if you're talking about an urban site and tight, that's what that is, and this is an urban site too," he said.
