On the heels of Wake County and the City of Raleigh agreeing to invest $300 million solely for the renovation of PNC Arena, the Carolina Hurricanes announced that they and Centennial Authority, the governing body that owns PNC Arena, have agreed to a 20-year lease extension that will keep the Canes locked in through the 2043-44 season.

As part of the agreement, Centennial Authority has greenlit the refurbishment of the arena, which will include "major renovations," as well as the development of the surrounding property into a transformative sports and entertainment district.

"This is an exciting day for the Triangle," said Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon in a statement released by the team. "This development will transform PNC Arena into a year-round destination for residents, while also improving the event day experience for Hurricanes fans, NC State fans and concertgoers alike. North Carolina is the home of the Hurricanes, and I am proud to say that the Hurricanes will continue to call PNC Arena home."

Gale Force Sports and Entertainment, which is a holding company that operates both the team and the arena itself and is owned by Dundon, has also agreed to pay, at a minimum, $800 million for the development of the property surrounding PNC Arena within 20 years.

The Carolina Hurricanes have inhabited PNC Arena, originally know then as the Raleigh Entertainment & Sports Arena and then eventually the RBC Center, since its construction in 1999.

The Canes along with the NC State men's basketball team are the two main tenants of the building, but PNC Arena also hosts many concerts and events throughout the year as well.

According to Hurricanes president and general manager Don Waddell, the main focus of the PNC Arena renovations will be consumer facing.

“The number one goal is obviously the fan experience," Waddell said in a presser following the agreement. "Not just for the Hurricanes, but NC State and all the other events that come in here. The bones of PNC Arena are in good shape with the money the CA has put in and my staff maintaining it, but what we don’t have is some of the amenities that the newer buildings have for our fans. Everything we’re talking about right now, for the most part, is going to be consumer facing. Now there may be some things we need to do with our office space moving it around or stuff like that to create more space at the front of the building, but there are lots of visions and ideas."

Waddell stated that the next step in the process is to consolidate and prioritize the list of projects that the stakeholders have brought forth in order to get the maximum return from the $300 million investment.

The Hurricanes have come a long way in the five-year span since Dundon bought the team. 

"When [Dundon] took over the franchise in 2018, we weren’t in very good shape, both from a competitive standpoint and a financial standpoint," Waddell said. "Now, five years later, we’ve made the playoffs all five years - for the first time in franchise history - we won our division the last three years - a first for our franchise. He’s very proud of what we have going on here so for him to commit like this... he wouldn’t be committing all this money, I know that, if he didn’t believe in what we’re doing here and what is going to happen here."

Now, there is a long-term commitment by both the team, the county and the city and the future development of the property looks to be a huge economic catalyst for the area.

"I think this potential development project is going to be the greatest thing to happen to West Raleigh since North Carolina State decided to build its university there," said Centennial Authority Board Chair Philip Isley. "It’s going to really be the catalyst for an extraordinary entrance into our city."