Never mind the 425 flat-screen TVs located throughout the arena, or the stunning views the 2,204 panels of glass offer of downtown, or even the automatic soap dispensers in the bathrooms.

No, for T.J. Lynn of Prairie Village, the best part of the Sprint Center has nothing to do with any of that.

Instead, it’s what the arena represents — downtown revitalization — that has him so excited.

“This whole area,” Lynn said, “is going to be so much fun.”

Lynn was one of 21,409 people who got their first glimpse of the Sprint Center on Wednesday, joining Garth Brooks and a host of Kansas City dignitaries who christened the facility. The arena was open to the public from the chilly morning hours until long after sunset.

It didn’t disappoint.

“Fantastic,” said Bill Lewis of Independence, who made the trip downtown with his wife, Judy. “Just the idea that Kansas City has been able to do something like this is hopefully going to turn things around downtown.”

Some people touring the arena were impressed with the open spaces — the wide concourses and spacious walkways and many lounge areas. Others were enamored with the Metro Sports Zone, an area just beyond the arena seats that offers walls of flat-screen TVs and seating at a suds-serving bar.

For some, the arena bowl itself is what was so impressive. The seats are soft, comfortable. There are armrests and drink holders and fabulous sight lines throughout most of the facility, and the electronic signs that circle the arena are a special effect waiting to happen.

Others were more impressed with the adjacent College Basketball Experience. Fans could walk through, but they couldn’t, on this day, participate in the interactive exhibits.

And for some, nothing beat the sense of openness that comes from those 750-pound panels of glass. As Jennifer McFarland, a Kansas City architect, said, “You always know where you are in connection to the city.”

The after-work, after-dark crowd was robust, too. Moms and dads pushed bundled-up babies in strollers as a steady stream of onlookers filled Grand Boulevard nearby. At 8 p.m., a line had formed to get in the arena.

The Gelles family — Tom and Lynne and their children, Kobe, 10, and Tori, 2 — braved traffic from Overland Park in the evening to be a part of the spectacle.

“When we came down here before, the only people downtown weren’t the most savory people,” Tom Gelles said. “But now inside there are lots of strollers. The lighting is really beautiful … and the building and the amenities were really loaded.”

Those amenities include 72 suites equipped with 46-inch plasma TVs, marble countertops and stainless steel appliances. There’s a “Founders Club” lounge, which fans can see firsthand for $3,500 a year. There are multiple dressing rooms for traveling acts. There’s a mascot room, where Truman the Tiger can remove his head without fear of being outed.

There are opulent locker rooms, where the players’ lockers are made of maple and the shower heads are 10 feet high — plenty high enough to accommodate NBA players, should that day come.

Tommy Webb of Kansas City sure hopes it does.

“I’ve got every limb on my body crossed,” he said.

Oh, not everything at the Sprint Center drew rave reviews.

Some fans grumbled about prices at the concession stand, where bottled water and bags of peanuts each cost $4. There are cheeseburgers for $7.50, and the Sprint Burger — complete with applewood bacon, an onion ring, cheese and “our special sauce” — goes for $9.

A limited number of seats have obstructed sight lines, where fans are wedged behind suites that jut outward. Those seats won’t always be sold, but when high-demand events like the Big 12 championship basketball game come around, they’ll come at full fare.

Other seats are a bit cramped, making visits to the aisle an inconvenience for those still in their chairs.

Some problems were temporary, the product of kinks not yet worked out: dusty seats; bolts that weren’t tightened; lack of air conditioning in the team store.

And the enormous escalators that shuttled fans to the arena’s upper reaches gave some fans the willies. Not 6-year-old Zachary Hofer of Olathe, though, who counted “the basketball field” and “the big TVs” as his favorite parts of the arena. Asked about the escalator, he opened his eyes wide and smiled, “Oh, yeah!”

Earlier in the day, civic leaders celebrated the arena’s opening in grand fashion.

With hundreds of people looking on, they stood outside the arena triumphantly. There were fireworks, confetti, applause, then more fireworks.

“Folks, this is a great day for Kansas City,” Mayor Mark Funkhouser said.

Echoed former Mayor Kay Barnes, the driving force behind the arena, “This is truly a wonderful day.”

Reproduced with permission of The Kansas City Star © Copyright 2006 The Kansas City Star. All rights reserved. Format differs from original publication. Not an endorsement.

© Kansas City Area Development Council