Photo of the Renaissance Center in downtown Detroit, Michigan.

Image Credit: Ken Lund (CC BY-SA 2.0)

The Detroit Pistons are relocating to downtown Detroit for the 2017-2018 NBA season to share Little Caesar's Arena with the Detroit Red Wings. The move comes rather unexpected after it was previously speculated that the Pistons would stay at the Palace of Auburn Hills in Auburn Hills, Michigan; their home arena since 1988. The move will put all four of Detroit's professional sports teams within blocks of each other. Little Caesar's Arena will also be the 11th arena that hosts both an NBA and NHL franchise under the same roof.

The neighborhood surrounding Little Caesar's Arena will be called "The District Detroit" and is a $1.2 billion mixed use development that will include restaurants, hotels, office space and retail shops. The Detroit Pistons organization will also be building their corporate offices as well as a brand new practice facility in the neighborhood. The Detroit Downtown Development Authority (DDA) will be contributing nearly $35 million to help incorporate professional basketball into the setup at Little Caesar's Arena. That money stems from bonds that were issued by the state of Michigan back in 2014. The capacity for Detroit Pistons home games will actually increase to 21,000 seats at Little Caesar's Arena from the 20,000 seat capacity at the Palace of Auburn Hills. 

Operations at Little Caesar's Arena will be overseen by Olympia Development; a subsidiary of Illitch Holdings. The Palace of Auburn Hills will continue to host concerts and other events. Palace Sports and Entertainment, which owns the Detroit Pistons, are confident that Oakland County will figure out what to do with the current site. There are rumors that the arena could be converted into an events center in the future. The Palace of Auburn Hills along with Madison Square Garden, were the only two remaining NBA arenas without corporate naming rights. Little Caesar's Arena is slotted to officially open on September 17th, 2017. 

 

Reference:

 

Related Articles