The San Antonio Spurs have been one of the most dominant teams in the NBA, winning four championships over the past 11 years.
Now, one of the league's best-run franchises is taking big steps to upgrade its 12-year-old arena into a first-class facility.
Rendering of AT&T exterior upgrades. (Courtesy of San Antonio Spurs)
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Yesterday, the Spurs announced that Bexas County, the arena's owner, had approved a $101.5 million plan to improve all areas of the building. The upgrades are scheduled for the summer of 2015.
A big chunk of the investment will cover technology upgrades inside and outside the arena, including a new center-hung video board and wraparound LED screens to the venue's three tower structures. In addition, there will be new seats installed throughout the arena, suites will be remodeled and new premium seat options, including theater boxes, will be developed as part of the renovations.
Plus, the team store will be expanded as well as the Whataburger concession stand on the plaza level.
The Spurs are providing $16.5 million in project funding with the remaining $85 million supplied through county-wide hotel and rental car taxes.
The newest improvements follow an earlier retroft revolving around an event-level club reserved for Spurs season-ticket holders sitting in the first three rows of the lower bowl.
AT&T Center opened in 2002 at a cost of $186 million. The Spurs shares the arena with the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo, the WNBA's San Antonio Stars and the AHL's San Antonio Rampage.