The team for the $1.15-billion rebuild of Seattle’s iconic Key Arena, now named Climate Pledge Arena, thought they could breathe a collective sigh of relief at the end of last year. They had successfully completed the mind-boggling top-down expansion of the city-owned venue’s below-grade footprint without disturbing the 45-million-lb landmark lid overhead. But though the biggest headache had ended, many smaller ones were just beginning, thanks to a developer-mandated redesign to make the arena more sustainable and to disruptions in the global supply chain, triggered by COVID-19.
Still, the building team managed to do workarounds and reach substantial completion on Oct. 15, two weeks ahead of schedule and within budget, says Will Traylor, project executive for the general contractor, Mortenson.