Touring the Renovated Madison Square Garden (to Be Continued)

The oddest part of seeing the first part of the three-part renovation of Madison Square Garden is traveling from the familiar lobby (which will not be done until Year 3), up the same old escalators (untouched until at least next year) and through the doors into the new main concourse, and feeling as if you’ve stepped into another building entirely.

That sixth-floor concourse, 50 percent wider and possibly 100 percent brighter than before, is one of a handful of the first-year projects that every fan will see. It will hold a new array of concession stands, some with seating.

The new locker rooms, player workout facilities and coaches’ offices will remain beyond most ticket holders’ views — except for the chosen few with access to the Delta Sky 360 Club, who will watch through a glass wall as the Rangers and Knicks players walk from their locker rooms to the arena — and the 20 event-level suites will be a mystery to everyone but the people who reportedly paid $1 million to occupy them.

Such are the realities of an arena renovation done in three parts, as the Garden has decided to do between seasons.

Still, unveiling the changes in a tour on Wednesday, Garden management proclaimed it is thrilled at what is accomplished so far, with the sixth-floor concourse as the centerpiece but also with an eighth-floor viewing deck and concourse area done a year ahead of schedule.

“What we set out to do is keep the magic of the Garden, the feel of the Garden, but to build a whole new arena,” said Hank Ratner, president of the Madison Square Garden Company.

From inside the arena bowl, the only noticeable difference is the new seats in the lower section, which are larger and cushier and a darker blue color. The upper deck renovations scheduled for next summer will significantly change the feel of the inside because the upper seats will be much closer to the playing surface. After Year 3, two catwalks will hang over the floor as well, with seating and a walkway for fans.

Part 1 required construction crews to work 24 hours a day since the last Rangers and Knicks games last spring, a rotation of three crews a day. The first event in the building will be a boxing match in the Theater on Sunday night. The Rangers’ first home game is next Thursday. The Knicks, of course, are mired in the N.B.A. lockout.

The renovations come with a cost, and not just to the Garden. Knicks’ ticket prices were raised an average of 49 percent and Rangers’ tickets jumped 23 percent. Ratner said that 90 percent of Knicks’ season-ticket holders renewed for this season and that 85 percent of Rangers’ ticket holders did.

Ratner also said the 20 new event-level suites sold out for this season. They are the most unusual of the new features, suites that are underneath the lower level of seats, unseen except for the door that leads out into the seating area.