The City of Sacramento and the Sacramento Kings are working on one of the biggest projects in Sacramento’s recent history—the development of a new, multi-million dollar indoor downtown arena that will accommodate entertainment and sporting events.
The $448 million Entertainment and Sports Center (ESC) project, expected to open October 2016, is currently in the design and predevelopment phase.
Since early this summer, efforts have been underway to assemble a team to help carry out the project. In June 2013, the Sacramento Kings hired ICON Venue Group to oversee the development of the project. Subsequently, Turner Construction was selected for pre-construction services in July and AECOM was selected as the lead design firm in August.
As part of this transformative project, it is expected that the new arena would establish a vision for future adjacent development in the form of up to 1.5 million square feet of development, including up to 475,000 square feet of office, 350,000 square feet of retail, up to 550 new residential units, and up to 250 hotel rooms.
There are various project milestones for the development of the new ESC. Here is the general timeline of events through the grand opening.
| Project Initiation | May 2013 |
| Selection of Design and Pre-Construction | August 2013 |
| Entitlement Application | November 2013 |
| Release of Draft EIR | December 2013 |
| Council Hearings | April 2014 |
| Demolition Start | Summer 2014 |
| Construction Start | Fall 2014 |
| Completion | September 2016 |
| Grand Opening | October 2016 |
To keep up-to-date, visit the project page.