After arena plaza revamp, maybe the arena operator should try to replace the unsightly rusted sidewalks?

Photos Aug. 5, 2022

There's a lot of work going on at the arena plaza, replacing the tiles, which were ten years old, somewhat the worse for wear, and outdated.

Note: the photo at right was taken through a hole in the green-draped fence that prevents access to much of the plaza, as work is going on.

Remember the tiles honoring the original sponsor, the New York Daily News? 

Since then, the plaza's been sponsored by Resorts World NYC Casino and now the ticketing company SeatGeek, as the arena operating company, owned by billionaire Joe Tsai, seeks additional revenues.

Lesson learned. As shown in the close-up below, there don't look to be any branded/logo'd tiles any more.

The work is expected to be finished by October, but it's likely the lion's share will be done by the ten-year anniversary of the arena opening, which will be Sept. 28.

Another project, perhaps

As I walked around the arena perimeter, I couldn't help but notice that there's another major job to be done.

As has been clear since the arena opened, the pre-rusted metal components of the arena facade and oculus were still dripping rust, staining the sidewalk below.

The New York Times had generously reported 8/29/12 (as I noted in a roundup a few months later):

The process put about six years of weathering onto the steel, according to Robert Sanna, an executive vice president and director at Forest City Ratner, the developer of the Barclays Center. So while there probably will be some rusty dripping, Ms. Sanna said, “this should keep it to a minimum, and you won’t have to worry that it will stain your sweater as you walk by.”

The Times also reported 11/27/12:

Joe DePlasco, a spokesman for the Barclays Center, said in an e-mail that the arena staff had expected the discoloration and planned to clean the sidewalk with, essentially, a “sidewalk power wash,” sometime in the next few weeks and then again as needed. 

Again as needed? Nah. That didnt work.

More on the plaza