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Convention prep underway at Wells Fargo Center

Construction is underway at the Wells Fargo Center 33 days out from the Democratic National Convention. Work on the arena, which was also transformed in 2000 to host the Republican National Convention, will get the bulk of the $84 million being raised for the big event July 25 to 28.

The media tents await the Democratic convention outside the Wells Fargo Center. Inside the center, the transformation has been sweeping, and sports memorabilia has been relocated or covered up.
The media tents await the Democratic convention outside the Wells Fargo Center. Inside the center, the transformation has been sweeping, and sports memorabilia has been relocated or covered up.Read moreJESSICA GRIFFIN / Staff Photographer

Construction is underway at the Wells Fargo Center 33 days out from the Democratic National Convention.

Work on the arena, which was also transformed in 2000 to host the Republican National Convention, will get the bulk of the $84 million being raised for the big event July 25 to 28.

Organizers held a news conference at the center Wednesday, as construction workers sawed through pieces of wood near a ketchup and mustard station and another crew sweated outside erecting huge white tents in the parking lots.

"Our convention complex team has been toiling through convention plans," said Leah Daughtry, CEO of the convention committee. "They've painstakingly laid out space for every single delegate seat, every single delegate wheelchair, television camera positions, and information kiosks. They've marked routes for hundreds of miles of cabling, juggled parking for a fleet of 400 buses, and sketched intricate stage designs."

The arena has almost been stripped bare, with several thousand seats removed to make way for a stage. Team banners and retired sport jerseys hanging from the rafters have been removed and taken to a "secure, undisclosed location," Daughtry said.

Display cases holding hats thrown on the ice from Flyers hat tricks and tributes to iconic Philadelphia athletes and teams will be covered up.

Inside the arena, temporary walls will go up in the concourses to create space for the individual caucuses.

An entire backstage area will include offices and walled-in spaces for up to six Secret Service protectees. There is also a speech and rehearsal room and a mock lectern where speakers practice before heading out on stage.

A huge stage lectern, television screens, and an electronic voting system for delegates will also be installed.

The upper-level suites will be stripped down to accommodate the needs of TV networks. The Wells Fargo Center is taking that opportunity to renovate the suites - some during convention construction and some after. Suites will expand with a reconfigured layout, more open-air viewing, and new carpeting and tile. It's part of an $18 million project to upgrade the 20-year-old arena, said John Page, president of the Wells Fargo Complex.

Page said everything will be returned to its place and ready for a Barbra Streisand concert Aug. 20 and one by Drake on Aug. 21.

The center factored the money it would have received from hosting concerts and events in July into contract negotiations with the DNC.

Hargrove Inc., based in Washington, is the general contractor for the building. The company handled the DNC in Charlotte, N.C., and has worked "with every presidential administration since Truman," president and CEO Carla McGill said.

Perryman Building & Construction, a local contracting company, is the primary subcontractor. Convention organizers have said they are committed to hiring minority- and women-owned businesses local to Philadelphia.

jterruso@phillynews.com

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