Bucks President Peter Feigin was presented with "documents he signed accepting" Fiserv Forum as ready for the team's use, with the documents stating the structure is "substantially complete," according to Rich Kirchen of the MILWAUKEE BUSINESS JOURNAL. The ceremony with Mortenson Construction was "attended by Bucks executives, dozens of Bucks employees, representatives of Mortenson and others involved with the high-profile project." By handing off Fiserv Forum to the Bucks, Mortenson "achieved its contractual requirement to substantially complete the arena by July 31." Mortenson Project Principal Mike Sorge "presented Feigin with an oversized key marking the occasion." The key "shows Milwaukee’s downtown skyline including Fiserv Forum as well as the logos of the Bucks and Mortenson" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 7/31). In Milwaukee, Jim Stingl writes the Fiserv Forum name "falls short of exciting when it's up in orange lights at the Bucks arena." These things "take time." But eventually fans will be "saying, 'Meet me at the Fiserv Forum,' with more or less a straight face." Fans have 25 years to "get used to it" (MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL, 8/1).
HEALTHY CHOICE: The MILWAUKEE BUSINESS JOURNAL's Kirchen noted the Bucks "will designate as non-smoking not only the new Fiserv Forum but also the entire 30-acre arena district." Feigin said that the team "wants to 'create a healthy neighborhood and community.'" He said that other recently-built NBA arenas "implemented similar non-smoking zones." Feigin: “We felt it made sense to umbrella the entire neighborhood.” He added that banning smoking in the arena area is "one of the prerequisites for the Bucks project to attain LEED silver certification." Asked how the Bucks will police smoking during arena shows featuring acts where a high percentage of fans typically smoke marijuana, Feigin said, “You certainly aren’t going to prohibit certain bands from playing” (BIZJOURNALS.com, 7/30).
