The seats are going in: A look at Tacoma Dome's renovations so far

With the high school graduations over and the summer concert season on pause, the Tacoma Dome’s extensive makeover is in full swing.

Seat demolition started in June and heavy machinery scrapped the old seats in the parking lot for removal. The work is part of the Dome’s $30 million-plus in renovations in its 35th year.

The demolition work is almost complete, Dome officials say. Concrete is being poured on the floor on one side and rebar is being installed on the other.

New, retractable seating is being assembled for the lower level. News seats are being installed in the upper level, replacing the benches. Upgrades are coming as well to the restrooms and the heating, cooling, lighting and audio systems.

“All kinds of action is going on right now,” Kim Bedier, director for Tacoma Venues and Events, City of Tacoma, told The News Tribune on Wednesday during a visit to see the progress. “We have new seats going in top to bottom.”

In addition, she said, workers “are doing some preliminary work on new restroom areas and also on our artist quarters.”

Dome officials released a rendering of what the Dome filled with seating will look like when finished.

“When you think that you used to have to come and spend a lot of money to sit on a metal bench, now everyone is going to have their own individual, brand new seat,” Bedier said.

The seats, in addition to adding comfort, will allow for quicker turnarounds between events. More events as a result of faster changeovers could help the venue rise in the ranks of its competitors in terms of ticket sales.

The concert trade publication Pollstar, which issues rankings for venues and tours based on ticket sales, recently ranked the Dome — with 221,861 tickets sold — No. 28 worldwide in its midyear report of 200 arena venues worldwide. In the United States, it came in at No. 12, the highest ranking in the Dome’s history of tracking the information.

Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota, at No. 27 was just ahead of the Dome, and Rogers Arena of Vancouver, British Columbia, was just behind at No. 29. Lanxess Arena in Cologne, Germany, at 597,002 tickets sold, was No. 1.

The rankings are based on nonsporting events from the start of the year through June.

“It is particularly gratifying to reach this milestone now, right as an investment is being made in the revitalization of the Tacoma Dome to ensure it continues to make headlines and draw headliners for years to come,” Bedier said in a Dome news release announcing the results.