It will cost millions of dollars to get the Pepsi Center ready for the Democratic National Convention if Denver is chosen to host the event.
The sports and entertainment arena would be unavailable for other events for up to eight weeks around the Aug. 25-28, 2008, convention in order to accommodate interior construction, setup and breakdown.
Denver is competing against New York for the convention, which is expected to draw 35,000 people. A decision from Democratic Party chairman Howard Dean is expected soon.
“My guess is it will be early next week,” Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper said Thursday.
The city would not pay any of the estimated $80 million to host the convention but would help provide security – at an estimated cost of about $25 million – and would be reimbursed by the federal government, according to bid documents from the Denver 2008 Convention Host Committee.
At national political conventions this decade held in Los Angeles, New York and Boston, more than $10 million apiece was spent to renovate the respective arenas.
“It would be a substantial number” at the Pepsi Center, said Mike Benson, senior vice president of business affairs and treasurer at Kroenke Sports Enterprises, which owns the 700,000-square-foot arena, the Denver Nuggets and the Colorado Avalanche.
Benson declined to provide renovation cost estimates.
Some expected changes would be converting 50 of the Pepsi Center’s 93 luxury suites into TV anchor booths, according to bid documents. Other upgrades could include additional audio systems and the installation of a teleprompter system.
The bid documents also detail how the host committee would be responsible for all associated construction costs and for returning the sports arena to Kroenke Sports in a “condition acceptable” to the company.
Kroenke Sports would charge the Democrats a rental fee, said Benson, but he declined to say how much.
It cost the Republicans $5 million to rent Madison Square Garden for their 2004 convention, according to a media report.
“Certainly there is a rental component to the budget,” Benson said.
The Staples Center in Los Angeles underwent $10 million in alterations to host the 2000 Democratic National Convention. That included the temporary removal of 4,000 seats, according to Michael Roth, the arena’s vice president of communications.
The center also converted nearly 40 of its 160 luxury suites into broadcast booths. That required removing furniture, adding air-conditioning units to handle the heat generated by television lights and upgrading wiring to meet broadcasting demands.
“You turn over your building to the DNC and work closely with them for two to three months,” Roth said.
Staples Center is owned by Denver financier Philip Anschutz.
Madison Square Garden in New York underwent a reported $11 million in renovations to prepare for the 2004 Republican National Convention. An estimated $150 million was spent overall for the New York event.
The Pepsi Center would have to be back in working condition by mid-September 2008 to accommodate the Colorado Avalanche hockey team’s preseason schedule, said Benson.
“It is a concern,” he said. “It’s a big undertaking.”
This August, the Pepsi Center hosted several major events, including the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, and Cirque du Soleil’s “Delirium.”
Staff writer Julie Dunn can be reached at 303-954-1592 or jdunn@denverpost.com.
Staff writer Will Shanley can be reached at 303-954-1260 or wshanley@denverpost.com.
$10 MILLION
Cost of renovating the Staples Center in Los Angeles for the 2000 Democratic convention
$14 MILLION
Cost of renovating Boston’s Fleet Center for the 2004 Democratic convention
$11 MILLION
Cost of renovating New York’s Madison Square Garden for the 2004 Republican convention
