Little Caesars Arena
Detroit
Award of Merit
Owner: Downtown Development Authority / Olympia Development of Michigan
General Contractor: Barton Malow/AECOMHunt (joint venture)
Leading design firm: OK
Structural engineer: Magnusson Klemencic Associates
As the future home of the Detroit Red Wings, Little Caesars Arena had to be built in 28 months, in time for the team's 2017-18 season opener. Starting with the excavation, crews worked seven days a week, excavating to a depth of 40 feet and removing more than 500,000 cubic yards of dirt. Less than 10 months until the grand opening, the Detroit Pistons announced that the arena would also become their new home. The move added significant scope to the schedule, but the original move date could not be extended. Entire areas of operation required reworking to meet both NHL and NBA standards.
The street-level arena court is a 61,000-square-foot covered walkway connecting new offices, retail and dining spaces. The concourse roof allows daylight to shine onto an 80m high atrium. The arena also features a sky deck — a 43,000-square-foot metal mesh system made up of 372 modular panels weighing approximately 205,000 pounds. It took about 81 miles of aircraft cable to create the walking surface. Construction workers logged 600,000 hours. Leveraging a series of contractor outreach events, the team exceeded its 30% local participation goal with 62% of total contracts awarded to Detroit businesses.
