Construction intensifies at downtown Sacramento arena site

A crew of more than 120 construction workers is making steady progress on a new downtown arena for the Sacramento Kings.

The pace at which the arena is rising from the ground has increased in recent weeks after crews spent months clearing the site at Downtown Plaza. The $477 million arena is on schedule to be completed by the time the 2016-17 NBA season starts in the fall of 2016.

Working 10-hour shifts, construction crews have completed roughly half the foundation for the arena’s main concourse. The frames of a “loft” seating area and a luxury suite are also visible on the site, and steel columns were being installed Wednesday to support the arena’s second level.

Arena construction project manager Robert Synhorst of ICON Venue Group said activity on the site will remain intense in the months to come, with hundreds more workers expected to join in the effort. He said the frame of the building could be completed by early fall and that the facility’s exterior facade and roof will begin to be constructed in August or September.

Much of the exterior frame of the Kings’ practice facility is complete; the building will stand adjacent to L Street, near Seventh Street. A large footprint for a planned 16-story hotel and condo tower has also been cleared along J Street, adjacent to the arena.

This story was originally published May 13, 2015 at 3:15 PM.