VIDEO TRANSCRIPT: Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon Unveils New and Improved Upstate Medical University Arena
Jared Valentin: The Syracuse Crunch have their home opener this weekend. When you walk into Upstate Medical University Arena, you might notice a few new differences.
Ryan McMahon: The sound system around the whole arena, it’s fantastic, it sounds great. It will certainly help the fan experience and help us as this venue has our anchor, the Syracuse Crunch. But also, we have a lot of different community shows and a lot of different musical acts and that will certainly help with those as well.
Valentin: One of the biggest differences is the Legacy Lounge, a downstairs hangout area open to the public. Director of Marketing Jackie Atkins says its a place for everyone.
Jackie Atkins: This was our vision, kind of this industrial modern space. We were looking to really elevate the customer experience and we were looking for a space that concert and family show attendees could also enjoy, that had that warm ambience and feeling of a place that belonged to them and something that paid homage to the facility.
Valentin: The facility hired Interior Innovations, an interior design company, to make the Legacy Lounge come to life.
Laura Cueva: I’m very proud, very proud. To tell everyone that we did it is the cherry on the cake.
John Granato: It’s been about a year in the making this whole process.
Valentin: The final product exceeded everyone’s expectations.
Cueva: I’m very proud. I’m most proud that they choose Interior Innovations to be part of that.
Granato: We’re looking forward to spending many events down here.
Atkins: I’m like a kid on Christmas morning. It was so exciting to see this actually go up.
Valentin: Beyond the legacy of the Legacy Lounge, fans will enjoy new seats and surround sound speakers.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC NEWS)- The Syracuse Crunch have their home opener this weekend, and when you walk into Upstate Medical Arena, you might notice a few differences.
Yesterday morning, Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon gave a tour to the media of the newly renovated Upstate Medical Arena, showcasing its improvements. The facility underwent a $2.6 million renovation this summer with the goal of improving fan experience during events. The arena got brand new seats and surround sound speakers to improve the immersion of the experience.
However, the biggest improvement to the building has been the creation of the Legacy Lounge, a downstairs facility open to the public before and after games. It is free to use and experience during Crunch home games and can be paid to rent during concerts and other events. McMahon hopes that this addition will get fans to stay downtown longer.
The facility hired Interior Innovations, an interior design company, to make the Legacy Lounge come to life. The company was given roughly a year to assemble the space and was beyond proud of the final result.
Fans can get their first look at the Legacy Lounge and the other improvements made to Upstate Medical Arena this Saturday when the Syracuse Crunch have their home opener against the Rochester Americans. Puck drop is at 7 p.m.