The Former Sacramento Kings Arena Has Been Converted Into A COVID-19 Surge Hospital
The Sacramento Kings are officially turning their old home, the Arco Arena, Sleep Train Arena, and Power Balance Pavilion into a surge hospital. The old arena, which is set to open Monday, now holds a 360-bed hospital to care for those with COVID-19.
“These days, our state’s soaring spirit is on full display — with Californians from every walk of life standing together, even while staying at home,” stated California Governor Gavin Newsom. “The State of California is working with the Kings to repurpose the team’s former home to help treat COVID-19 patients and meet the coming surge in demand for hospital space. This facility, which for decades brought joy to the lives of Californians, will now be in the business of saving lives. I applaud the Kings and all the federal, state, and local officials who worked in concert to make it happen.”
In addition to their work with the state and the federal government to prepare the Notaomas property, the Kings pledged $250,000 to support those in their community affected by the pandemic as well as 100,000 medical masks to be given to the state and city health agencies.
“Our community has always come first, and that is more important now than ever,” stated Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadivé. “The Kings are proud to help by providing additional space to accommodate a predicted surge in patients. We are also donating masks to help keep people healthy and critical resources to area organizations that are addressing food insecurity and other issues as a result of the coronavirus. I have always been in awe of the resilience and ingenuity of the American people and firmly believe that together, we will defeat this invisible enemy.”
The Kings moved their arena in 2015, and since then, it has mostly sat empty minus some of King’s G-League team practices. The hope is the arena can provide much-needed aid to help those suffering.
