Boston-based builder Shawmut Design and Construction has completed two new fan areas in the Barclays Center, home of the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets and WNBA’s New York Liberty, according to an Oct. 23 news release. Both the Gallagher Terrace premium membership club and the Modelo Bridge projects are part of a five-year, approximately $100 million plan to boost attendees’ arena experience.
The 5,300-square-foot Gallagher Terrace replaces sections of the arena’s luxury locations, namely the 40/40 Club and the Loge Boxes, according to the news release. Inspired by Brooklyn’s Gilded Age, the space is the arena’s only in-seat dining experience with visibility to the court and waiter service.
The Modelo Bridge is a two-level, 6,800-square-foot social hub, per the release. The centerpiece, shaped like a bridge, connects two standing-room decks with unobstructed views of games or entertainment and downtown Brooklyn. It includes the arena’s largest bar — at 67 feet in length — food and merchandise kiosks and artwork from local muralists.
Shawmut worked with architect Populous to execute the renovations, alongside Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment, according to the news release.
The team executed “a fast-track, high-impact renovation that seamlessly blends functionality with a design that pays tribute to the Brooklyn community,” said David Margolius, executive vice president of Shawmut’s New York Metro region.
For Barclays Center, the first phase of its $100 million plan featured the establishment of two open concept, premium membership clubs — The Toki Row and JetBlue at The Key — in the arena, which added to the arena’s existing luxury spaces, according to an October 2024 news release. Shawmut led the construction of phase one, according to the company.
Other projects that Shawmut has completed for the Barclays Center include the Garden Bar on the arena’s main concourse and six backstage dressing rooms, alongside the Crown Club, the New York Liberty locker and weight rooms and the team store, per the release.
Barclays Center also flagged that it would complete multiple renovation projects over the next five years to improve the experience for all guests, regardless of seat location, per the announcement.
Other recent stadium renovations — such as M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, home of the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens and Rogers Centre in Toronto, home of the MLB’s Toronto Blue Jays — have put an emphasis on premium, luxury spaces in sports venues.
This push stems from an attempt to generate more revenue from different groups of attendees, Michael Hessert, senior principal with PBK Sports, the athletics arm of Houston-based architecture firm PBK, told Construction Dive last year.
“Whereas before you may have had four categories that were stacked vertically from lower cost to higher cost, the more layers that you can put in there now, the more you can drive the revenue dollar into a higher bracket and increase your revenue stream without adding more seats,” Hessert said.
