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New Red Wings arena takes shape in stunning renderings (Video)

The model of the Detroit Red Wings new arena is starting to take shape. And it looks most impressive, in the above video provided by the Red Wings.

It will be in a 45-block area, called “The District Detroit” and will include residential, retail and commercial elements.

Somewhere Kid Rock is writing a rock ballad about America and Detroit to commemorate this. Oh wait, he’s written like 30 of those already.

The rendering was recently opened in the northwest corridor of Comerica Park – the home of the Detroit Tigers. Gross pizza guru Mike Ilitch owns both the Red Wings and Tigers.

There’s also this element, explained in Sports Business Journal:

The design "offers the feel of a pedestrian walkway adjacent to the seating bowl and lined by retail and restaurant options, all under a clear roof cover." Officials at Red Wings owner Mike Ilitch's real estate group, Ilitch Holdings, "hope that once their initial project begins, it will spur additional development from businesses looking to join the novel design of a 'village of buildings,'" as HOK co-Founder & Senior Principal George Heinlein describes the project.

Photo via YouTube screen shot
Photo via YouTube screen shot

It will also feature a 'Sunken Bowl' design, which supposedly will make it seem less like a major arena and blend with the neighborhood.

Red Wings CEO and parent company Olympia Entertainment President & CEO Tom Wilson said that the sunken-bowl design "significantly reduces the height of the structure -- it will be about half the height of United Center and Staples Center to bring scale for the overall development and make it feel more like a regular neighborhood."

The Red Wings currently play in Joe Louis Arena – which opened in 1979. The new arena, which is set to open in 2017 will be the first new building in the league since Pittsburgh and the Penguins opened the Consol Energy Center in 2010.

Ilitch has been adamant about building and keeping downtown Detroit vibrant, in spite of the city’s poor economics. In that case, look at all the happy people in the below picture.

Photo via YouTube screen shot
Photo via YouTube screen shot

This reported $650 million project appears ambitious, no doubt, but appears to be a valiant attempt to revitalize the city. No word yet on the official pizza vendor in the arena.

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Josh Cooper is an editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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