“We continued to expand the building, and there were costs associated with COVID-19 as well,” Leiweke said. “But a lot of things are things that we decided to add and do. There were the things that we committed to getting the arena deal with the city, and then the things that we had to do to get it. the NHL franchise. And then there’s the NBA. so we can be ready for the NBA if and when the league decides to make a team available. “

The WNBA Storm will also play their home games in the arena.

Leiweke commented on a day when OVG announced a long-awaited founding partnership agreement that makes Verizon the official 5G and technology partner for Climate Pledge. The deal was finalized months ago to include three OVG venues at Climate Pledge, the New York Islanders UBS Arena in Long Island, New York, which will open next October, and the planned arena venue. Coachella Valley in California where the future branch of the Kraken American Hockey League. hopes to open the game at the end of 2022.

New York-based Verizon was chosen over local tech giant T-Mobile of Bellevue and AT&T based in Texas. Wireless work by Verizon at Climate Pledge began months ago to prepare the site for the interior finishes now underway as the race to complete construction by October continues.

“We have been impressed with their vision for 5G and their commitment to 5G,” Leiweke said of Verizon, adding that the company’s technology should improve the speed at which arena users can use. their mobile devices for voice and data functions. “Technology is only good if you can access it.”

No financial amount has been made available. When the Seattle Times flagged Verizon as the top contender for technology partner in January 2020, two sources in the business community said OVG had received bids in excess of $ 5 million per year with a guaranteed infrastructure spend of $ 20. millions of dollars.

“The Verizon 5G platform is changing the way fans experience live events and venues operate,” Verizon vice president for sponsorship Yvette Martinez-Rea said in a statement. “Working with Oak View Group as a strategic technology partner will enhance the arena experience for years to come.”

Verizon joins other founding partners of Climate Pledge, including Amazon, Symetra, Virginia Mason, Alaska Airlines and WaFd Bank.

Leiweke said Verizon’s existing relationship with the NHL weighs on its tech rivals. He added that it was part of his team’s expansion deal with the NHL that existing league partners are given the “first shot” of the deals with the club.

“We were all impressed,” he said of the three wireless heavyweights. “We all know them well. But Verizon had an advantage inherent in its previous relationship with the league. And when you say arenas in Seattle and New York, that means something.”

Construction costs for the arena renovation were initially estimated at $ 600 million when the city of Seattle chose OVG to renovate the facilities in the spring of 2017. This estimate rose to $ 700 million in mid-2018, $ 800 million when the NHL franchise was awarded in December 2018, $ 850 million at the start of 2019, and then $ 930 million in the spring of this year. Among the additions was the design of the arena’s luxury suites by East Coast architect David Rockwell, a costly upgrade, OVG says, will generate future income for an NBA team and increase the chances of getting it. a.

OVG and its partners are covering the full cost of the project and have pledged to pay $ 260,000 per game moved for the Storm this summer – up to $ 2.6 million per season – because the WNBA franchise will not return in June. as originally planned. .