The city-owned Enmarket Arena in West Savannah will begin having events in January, but parking and street improvements around the $170 million event space won't be ready until May or June, according to the city.
The Enmarket Arena will have its ribbon-cutting ceremony on Jan. 13, with the first event slated for the following day. To work around the infrastructure challenges plaguing the new venue — which will host the Ghost Pirates minor-league hockey team and large-scale concerts — the city released a traffic plan to mitigate traffic concerns and keep visitors out of the surrounding neighborhoods.
The city and arena operator, Oak View Group, have worked to use two church-owned parking lots and eight city properties around the arena until the infrastructure improvements are finished. There will be about 1,600 parking spaces available for the first several events, as well as a designated Uber and Lyft drop-off/pick-up space and a free trolley from the Historic District to incentivize attendees not to drive.
Credit: City of Savannah
Credit: City of Savannah
In a memo to the mayor and aldermen of the city, City Manager Jay Melder said people attending events at the arena will reserve parking spaces in one of the eight lots when they confirm their tickets. The first several events will be monitored by drones and emergency personnel to ensure traffic flow runs smoothly, Melder added.
The city has hired the same traffic control group they use for St. Patrick's Day to control flow of the first several events, which are music concerts, WWE wrestling matches and a comedy show.
The delays in infrastructure improvements were caused by a myriad of factors, according to Melder's memo, including environmental remediation, relocating historical structures and supply-chain disruptions.
The projects delayed until May or June are:
- Widening Stiles Avenue (between the arena and Gwinnett Street) to four lanes and adding bike lanes and sidewalks
- Widening Gwinnett Street (between I-16 and Stiles Ave.) to four lanes and adding bike lanes and sidewalks
- A 2,000-space parking lot next to the arena. Half of the spaces should be finished by March.
- Widening the Springfield Canal and building a bulkhead at the nearest point to the arena
Credit: Richard Burkhart/Savannah Morning News
Credit: Richard Burkhart/Savannah Morning News
The months of work to build out the Enmarket Arena and surrounding Canal District -- which will bring parks and retail to the area -- borders several residential neighborhoods, including Carver Village and Brickyard. City leaders have long-pledged the improvements brought by the arena are meant to uplift the economically depressed area, not displace current residents.
The city and arena operator will attempt to shield the neighborhoods from the first few months of traffic woes with neighborhood barriers marking streets for "residential parking only."
In his pre-Christmas press conference to the city, Mayor Van Johnson said the city would be towing vehicles who ignore the barriers and park in the neighborhoods.
Zoe covers growth and how it impacts communities in the Savannah area. Find her at znicholson@gannett.com, @zoenicholson_ on Twitter, and @zoenicholsonreporter on Instagram.
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Enmarket Arena slated for January opening, but parking won't be ready for months
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