Henderson approves design, construction team for hockey arena

The Henderson City Council on Tuesday voted to hire a design and construction team for the minor league hockey arena it approved last month.

Council members voted to award the project to a team led by The Whiting-Turner Contracting Co. Councilman Dan Stewart cast the lone dissenting vote, and Councilman John Marz was absent.

The council heard about two hours of public comment from supporters and opponents of the project. However, the council already approved the arena last month.

The venue will replace the Henderson Pavilion at Green Valley and Paseo Verde parkways. The design approved Tuesday calls for 6,100 seats in the venue and 1,400 on-site parking spaces.

The arena will be the site of home games for the recently named Henderson Silver Knights minor league hockey team. It will also host community events such as performances by the Henderson Symphony Orchestra.

According to the agenda item, the project has a guaranteed maximum price of $70 million.

When it approved the project, the council set a total project budget of $84 million to be shared evenly between the city and the Vegas Golden Knights, who own the minor league team.

The project has drawn sharp criticism from some residents. An effort to effectively put the project on the ballot in November started last month. The initiative seeks to bar the city from spending public money on an arena to replace the pavilion.

Contact Blake Apgar at bapgar@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5298. Follow @blakeapgar on Twitter.