Ryan Smith unveils 2026 and 2027 Delta Center construction plans
ryan smith’s Delta Center overhaul moved into its next phase with construction details for the 2026 and 2027 offseasons. Smith Entertainment Group laid out how the arena will be rebuilt for basketball and hockey, with changes that start in the upper bowl and reach down to suites, concourses, and fan areas.
Smith Entertainment Group said, "When complete, every seat throughout the arena will be replaced and reconfigured to ensure full sightlines for both basketball and hockey." That is the core promise of the project: not just a cosmetic refresh, but a reworking of how the building functions for both sports.
Delta Center seat rebuild
After this offseason, the Delta Center’s upper-north end zone will have new terrace-style ledges with full-view seating. Suspended gondolas will also be built along both sidelines, giving over 200 fans a bird’s-eye view of the event floor. Those additions point to the same goal from a different angle: more usable seats, fewer blocked views, and a better upper-bowl product for people buying into the building’s highest levels.
The arena’s old layout had already made sightlines a central issue, and the new design answers that directly with a seat-by-seat rebuild. Level 4 is part of that reconfiguration, which means the upper reaches of the building are being folded into the redesign instead of treated as leftover space.
North side in 2026
In 2026, renovations to suites begin on the north side. Before the 2026-27 season, the parking structure at the southwest corner of the arena will be completed. That gives the project a practical sequence: fix access first, then keep moving through premium seating and the rest of the building while fans still need to get in and out of the arena.
SEG is working with Okland Construction, SCI Architects, CAA Icon, and Walter P. Moore on the transformation. The scope is broader than seats alone, with new and redesigned social areas, more bathroom capacity, expanded club spaces, and updated concourses and concession locations all in the plan.
2027 slope and suites
In 2027, major construction will introduce a dynamic slope design connecting the upper and lower levels starting from the floor and working upward. Suite renovations on the north side will also be completed that year. That timing matters for the people paying for premium access as well as the fans in the upper bowl, because the project is not stopping at one section of the building.
Future plans still include a new main entrance and outdoor plaza, so the 2026 and 2027 work is not the endpoint. For now, the clearest read is that Smith is pushing the Delta Center toward a fully rebuilt dual-sport venue, and the next two offseasons are the point when the building starts looking like that plan in concrete and steel.
