[The Familia]

This new arena concept follows virtually none of the recommendations outlined in the Rivers District Master Plan as linked above. This is what was bound to happen with CMLC dropped as the developers.

They state the intersection at 12th Ave and Olympic Way is the knuckle and gateway to the East Village. As such, it should be a focal point entrance of the arena. What we got is an after thought, almost as if they said “shoot, I guess we can throw a couple doors in this corner”. The NW and SW entrances should have both been dynamic entrances with plaza space. The entire West wall should be retail (which it has to a degree) connecting the two corners. Instead of just three large restaurant type retail places, I was hoping for a few smaller CRU’s along the strip as well. CRU’s should have also been placed along either 12th or 14th, with my preference being 12th if they couldn’t do both. I never expected retail on all 4 sides, I do expect it along a minimum or 2 with 3 being the most ideal. Even retail halfway down the North and South facades would have been a win.

The arena lacks windows. It feels heavy, dark, and sterile. It doesn’t look inviting and is just another cold box that you don’t really want to linger around for too long. Material selection looks cheap which doesn’t help. Overall I expect an upgrade over the Saddledome but it will fall well short of being transformative and will probably do little to increase the vibrancy of the area. My final grade after looking it over for a week is a D+ or a solid 59%.