High rollers at the Barclays Center will get their own VIP entrance — with a concierge desk and a sleek chandelier — when the $800-million arena opens in Prospect Heights next fall.
The team provided a first glimpse of the under-construction Barclays Center’s interior bells and whistles on Tuesday, releasing renderings of the arena’s amenities created by the New York-based firm SHoP Architects.
“Nothing was spared in creating an inviting and spectacular environment,” said Nets CEO Brett Yormark. “The interior spaces of the Barclays Center will provide premium experiences that are reflective of a sophisticated and dynamic venue.”
Besides the VIP entrance on Atlantic Avenue, suite and premium seat holders will have access to the center’s 10-person signature suite and the Courtside Club, which boasts up-close-and-personal views of players and entertainers as they enter and exit the arena.
Fans in the nosebleeds will settle for less.
Regular visitors will enter the 19,000-seat Barclays Center through a nice, but subdued, atrium that gives way onto a Main Concourse — rendered in subdued, earth-tone colors — and lined with food vendors, bars and a Legends Lounge overlooking the court.
The masses will also be able to quench their thirst at Beers of the World, an eco-friendly bar made with reclaimed wood.
“SHoP wanted the design of the interiors of the Barclays Center to be focused on bringing the energy of Broooklyn street life into the arena,” said Gregg Pasquarelli, one of the firm’s founders. “The design uses a simple yet tactile palette of industrial materials to create an urbane experience open to all.”
The arena, being built at the intersection of Flatbush and Atlantic avenues, is scheduled to open next September.
It’s part of developer Bruce Ratner’s $4.9-billion Atlantic Yards mega-project, which includes 16 towers that have been stalled by years of delay, financing problems and lawsuits from community groups opposed to the plan.
Critics were nonplussed by the arena’s glitzy design.
“It’s surprising that they don’t have the money to pay for the rest of the project,” said Candace Carponter, the legal director of Develop Don’t Destroy Brooklyn, one of the groups suing the state over Atlantic Yards, “but they’re going to sell high-priced tickets to high-rollers who’ll show up in big cars and clog traffic on our streets.”
