The Milwaukee Bucks hope their new $524 million arena attracts more than basketball fans when it opens in September 2018.
GM Raj Saha believes the opening of the yet-to-be-named Wisconsin Entertainment and Sports Center will attract Latin and hip hop tours to a state and city that usually gets passed over for big shows.
"The music industry looks at Milwaukee as a great market for country, rock and pop, but it's rare that a Latin or hip hop arena tour will stop in the market," he said. "But Milwaukee has changed so much in the past ten years and there's a great opportunity to really expand the music scene and include more genres."
Milwaukee is also home to Summerfest, one of the largest annual festivals in North America, along with famous tour stops like the 1,300-capacity Pabst Theater and The Rave, a 1,500-capacity multi-hall concert venue. The new 17,500-seat arena will be located in downtown Milwaukee not far from its current home, The Bradley Center. Populous and HNTB are leading the arena design team with participation from Milwaukee firm Eppstein Uhen.
"The new arena will be completely state of the art," Saha said, adding the lower bowl will grow from 6,000 seats to 10,000 seats, allowing for a large uptick in premium seats for show promoters. The facility will have 34 suites and six party lofts. The new arena will be an open venue to all promoters, and Saha said he hopes to pick up shows traveling between Chicago, which is only 90 miles south, and Minneapolis.
"In some parts of northern Illinois and the northern Chicago suburbs, it's easier to get to Milwaukee than it is to get to Chicago," Saha said. "And we're the only building in 2018 and that's really generating significant buzz for us. There's a ton of interest and from the day we open in September on to the New Year, every Saturday is booked up."
Saha comes to Milwaukee after a two-year stint as a sports facility consultant and has spent time working in Brazil and Europe for AEG, as well as an eight-year stint at Madison Square Garden. He tells Billboard the construction of the arena remains on track and will be open in time for the start of the 2018-19 NBA season. Besides the Bucks, the new arena will also be home to Marquette University basketball.
