Inside and out, the mandate from Turner Broadcasting System to the architects was clear: Make the arena big and functional, as well as intimate and memorable.
Despite the seemingly contradictory orders, the team of HOK Sport and Arquitectonica was able to incorporate features to make the new home of the Atlanta Hawks and the Atlanta Thrashers unique.
Atlanta's new steel, glass and concrete arena will have a unique roof-line, as its predecessor did. But unlike the former Omni's egg-crate look, the new place will have three expansive, layered roofs that will come to life with lights at night.
Stainless steel columns supporting the roofs will spell "Atlanta" on the main, Techwood Drive side of the building and "CNN" on the International Boulevard side. Fans will walk through the 60-feet-high letters to enter the arena. and fans will walk under them as they enter.
"We were looking to design a building that was timeless," said Bernardo Fort Brescia, partner of Miami-based Arquitectonica. "We wanted a welcoming arcade that could be a symbol for Atlanta. We looked at the beauty of the word Atlanta -- its symmetry and interesting geometry. We thought it would be powerful, unique and give this arena an identity. We tried hundreds of different designs. It was a real labor of love to develop something that had a beauty on its own and in the end would say Atlanta."
Fort Brescia also said the Atlanta columns would be a "participatory or interactive sculpture. You can go and touch them."
As one of the main features of the building, the top roof and its trusses will be in full view from the seats.
The seating configuration departs from those of other modern arenas.
"It was difficult," said Joe Spear, senior vice president of HOK Sport. "What one person thinks is intimate, the other does not. We tried 16 different seating bowls before we hit on one."
All contemporary facilities have luxury suites and premium seating to enhance their revenues by millions of dollars a year. But typically, they are put around the belly of a arena. That arrangement pushes the cheaper seats, located above the suite levels, higher up in the rafters. It also robs large arenas of intimacy.
But in this arena, one quadrant of the building will house the 96 suites and their 1,400 seats, along with another 2,100 club seats offering in-seat food service, convenient parking and other amenities.
The rest of the arena will be for season-ticket holders and single-game purchasers. As a result, even the fans in the upper level's cheaper seats will be lower and closer to the action than they would be under a more conventional design. About 12,000 of the 20,000 seats are on the lower level .
Among the arena's features:
* Designed by HOK Sport and Arquitectonica, it will have steel trusses supporting three roofs that resemble cards being fanned. The trusses will spell "Atlanta" on one side and "CNN" on the other. Dramatic lighting will enhance the new landmark at night. "We wanted it to be instantly recognizable and to make a statement, at least as recognizable as the Sydney Opera House," Kasten said of the famous Australian site.
* The seating arrangement will put the average fan closer to the action. Luxury suites and premium club seats will be stacked vertically in one quarter of the seating bowl, meaning fans in the upper level will be closer by at least six rows compared with other modern arenas..
* The luxury suites will be open, enhancing the acoustics for concerts, architects said.
* Between the arena and CNN Center will be an enclosed atrium with a 400-foot-long street, retail shops and entertainment.
THE ULTIMATE SPORTS ROAD TRIP
By: Andrew Kulyk & Peter Farrell
| Philips Arena Ranking by USRT |
| Architecture |  | 6.5 |
| Concessions | | 8 |
| Scoreboard | | 8 |
| Ushers | | 6 |
| Fan Support | | 1 |
| Location | | 7 |
| Banners/History | | 7 |
| Entertainment | | 7 |
| Concourses/Fan Comfort | | 6 |
| Bonus: CNN Center Atrium | | 4 |
| Bonus: Old Omni Scoreboard | | 2 |
| Total Score |  | 62.5 |
December 3, 1999
December 4, 1999
November 9, 2004 - Phillips Arena is the sparkling home for the NBA Atlanta Hawks and the NHL Atlanta Thrashers. When they picked
a new location for their new venue, which opened in 1999, several alternatives to the location of the old Omni were considered. But why re-invent the wheel? The best spot for the new venue was right where the old one stood. So the Omni was razed, and right in its spot the new Phillips Arena was built. We can't imagine a better spot than this!
Getting to the Venue
The arena is situated on the east side of downtown, right next to the landmark Georgia Dome and the huge Georgia Convention Center. Directional signage throughout the downtown streets are abundant, and coming in to downtown from any of the arterials, I-75, I-85 or I-20 will also direct you to the venue. Another easy way to get here is via the MARTA rail line. Exit W1 is steps from the building's front door. Cost for parking in the ramp is $15, though cheaper lots can be found for as little as $5. Free on street parking is pretty scarce and far away so plan to pay.
Outside the Venue
Other well known Atlanta landmarks such as the CNN World Center and Centennial Park are right next to the arena. In fact, the CNN Center is connected right to the arena, and the breathtaking 20 story atrium houses a good number of restaurants, shops and fast food eateries, so this makes for a good pre game destination. One of the most unique characteristics of the exterior facade is for the word ATLANTA which is inscribed in huge letters in the pillars of the front lobby. A video board and lighted marquee sits on a wall of the parking garage a block away .
Concourses
Once inside the arena take a walk around the concourses with plenty of merchandise and concession stands. There were a couple of things that caught our eye here, one was an old four-sided scoreboard without a video board. Later we were to find out that this was the old main scoreboard at the Omni and as we saw during the game it is still fully functional and still used to keep time and score and other vital stats of the game going on in progress. The other thing we noticed was the wall of television monitors(roughly 100?) as we went up the escalator to the upper level showing various sports events from around the nation. You could catch the action on those screens from many vantage points in the upper and lower concourses. And at the top of the escalator is where the arena has an interactive game experience area with hoops for kids, video games and so on.
The major merchandise store is located near the CNN Center entrance of the venue.
Another major feature of the lower concourse is a colorful area named "HawkWalk", simply it is the prime area of the venue to find concessions, merchandise and the like.
Seating Bowl
Inside the arena bowl you will find the usual two level seating area with suites and the like. However this building diverges in a major way from other arenas when it comes to club seats and suite locations. Instead of the traditional, suites and club seats between the upper and lower seating areas this arena has all club seats consisting of the entire lower seating level on one sideline of the arena and there are four level of suites atop overlooking these club seats. Truly unique and something we have not seen before or since.
There is a four sided Phillips videoboard in the center of the building along with dot matrix boards above the seating area at each end zone supplying statistics and out of town scores. LED ribbon boards run around the circumference of the balcony and are complemented by companion boards at the base of the center scoreboard.
Banners/Retired Numbers
The Hawks have three retired numbers for Bob Pettit (from the club's days in St. Louis), Lou Hudson, and Dominique Wilkins. They also have banners commemorating their division titles won while in Atlanta.
The Thrashers have two banners: one for their inaugural season of 1999-2000, and one for their fifth season in 2003-04. What??? No banners for the second, third , and fourth seasons? This reeks of those "thank you for participating" certificates that kids get after playing in Little League and has absolutely no place wasting air in an arena's rafters!!!
Did you know???? The Hawks franchise began play in the mid 40's as the Buffalo Bisons.
Slam Dunks, Assists, Fouls
Extra Point(s) - The Thrashers and Hawks both had pretty wretched teams that season yet both teams were victorious. The Thrashers with a one goal win over the then-division leading Panthers, and Hawks hanging on to a narrow win over the Pistons as Detroit's last gasp FG attempt for the W bricked off the backboard.
Foul - on our return visit in 2004 , we attended the Hawks opening night, and the Hawks put on an astounding display of why they've been an NBA lottery regular. They tied a franchise low for points in a half on their way to being routed by the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Slam Dunk - During the Thrashers game they brought out a real decibel counter to show how loud the fans were, a refreshing change from all of those useless "Fan-O-Meter" graphics on too many Jumbotrons across the US.
Extra Point - The big game in town that weekend in 1999 wasn't the Hawks,Thrashers, or Falcons but the SEC Championship at the Georgia Dome Saturday Night as Alabama pummeled Florida for the right to go to the Sugar Bowl. I can still remember us failing miserably at kicking field goals at the SEC Experience as well as all of those Gators fans on I-75 making the trek up with us to Atlanta.
Special thanks to Scott Riley, who put us up at his home in the 'burbs for a few days during our first visit, saving us a bundle on hotel expenses. That alone qualified him for induction into our Hall of Fame.
Summary
We like arenas in bustling downtown locations, and this one certainly fits the bill. Better yet, the Georgia Dome and the massive convention center complex are also nearby, creating all sorts of urban synergies. Two elements make this venue unique and striking... first of all, the connection the building has with the CNN Center next door. The dramatic atrium almost serves as the venue's main lobby, and lots of shopping and eating options here for before the game. Second, the "Hawk Walk" concourse is so festive and colorful, it really sets the tone for this building. Too bad the teams that play here are mired in such muck. For Phillips Arena is a great venue in a vibrant and exciting city, and earns a top mark on our list.
