Intrust Venue Plan

Sedgwick County will discuss a $2 million remodel that would add an expanded lobby, more doors and more stairways to the northern entrance of the arena.

Officials say they want to improve guests’ experience at the arena and better handle the foot traffic of larger events, such as the first and second rounds of the 2018 NCAA men’s basketball tournament, according to the Wichita Eagle.

County CFO Chris Chronis said the project would be a “fairly significant change to the footprint of the building.” The northern entrance – Entrance C – was created to be a secondary entrance that features a small lobby and a one-person, one-way escalator, Chronis said. At some events, upwards of 50 percent of attendees go through Entrance C, Arena GM A.J. Boleski told the Eagle. The remodel would add more space to the arena’s lobby, more doorways and staircases to the main and upper concourse.

They’re also considering putting in another box office location on that side of the arena, the paper said. SMG is contracted by Sedgwick County to operate Intrust Bank Arena.

The county is responsible for approving and funding capital improvements to the arena. SMG provides a list of projects to the county every year before Oct. 1 and the county has 30 days to approve them. The $2 million remodel is part of a list of arena upgrades totaling about $3.4 million for 2017. If approved, Entrance C would be closed for about four months, most likely between June and September 2017, the Eagle said.