A conference room table in the city’s Urban Development Department was piled high Friday with boxes and envelopes containing proposals from developers interested in working with the city as it considers building a new arena.

Five development teams submitted proposals detailing how they would help develop Lincoln’s arena project, including several with experience building arenas nationally. Lincoln voters will decide next year whether to build a new arena.

Developers nationwide were invited by the city to make pitches. Those who responded were:

* Dial Realty Corp. of Omaha, Harpool Morgan Haney of Mission, Kan., and Global Entertainment of Phoenix, Ariz.

* Garfield Traub Development of Dallas, with operator Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide of Phoenix.

* Acquest, Bloomfield Hills, Mich., HOK Sport Venue Event of Kansas City and Pizzuti Solutions of Downers Grove, Ill.

* John Q. Hammons Industries of Springfield, Mo.

* Lincoln Traction Partners, Lincoln developers William and Robert Scott and developers W. Richards and Jeffrey Woodbury of Salt Lake City, Utah.

Details of the proposals were not released, but three of the developers spoke to the Journal Star about their proposals.

One of the leading contenders has to be Garfield Traub Development of Dallas. The company has nearly $200 million worth of sports and entertainment venues under development nationwide, including arenas in Tucson, Ariz., Albuquerque, N.M., and Toledo, Ohio.

Greg Garfield, a principal with the company, said his company proposed a 15,000-seat arena, 55,000-square-foot convention center, 400-room Sheraton Hotel and parking garages — although the sizes could be refined. The proposal includes a plaza for community events and incorporates “green” concepts into the design.

“We think we have delivered a really fantastic proposal that will benefit the city,” Garfield said.

He said his team has both an experienced national partner and “strong local roots,” including Lincoln planning and engineering company Olsson Associates and local architectural firms Bahr Vermeer Haecker Architects and Clark Enersen Partners.

The Garfield Traub team also includes DLR Group, the Omaha architecture firm that designed the Qwest Center and Haymarket Park and will be designing a $13 million ice skating center near the arena. Their general contractor would be Sampson Construction Co. of Lincoln.

DLR principal architect Stan Meradith and Cori Sampson Vokoun of Sampson Construction have worked closely with the local committee that has directed planning and promotion of a new arena. Sampson Vokoun is one of three chairs of the committee, and DLR has basically master planned the project up to now, largely for free, since being invited into arena talks in December 2004.

Garfield Traub proposed either a public-private partnership, or a publicly owned arena and convention center and possible hotel — which is how most cities do it, Garfield said. They would act as a development manager, providing everything from design and construction to financing options.

Lincoln leaders have often said they’d like the city to fund an arena and a private entity to build a convention hotel. Gadflies sometimes say they’re all for the whole project as long as it’s all privately funded. Garfield said his company often encounters that sentiment, but said such an arrangement rarely makes sense.

“There are no projects of this nature that make sense or that are feasible as purely privately owned developments,” he said.

That’s because arenas and convention centers rarely turn a profit; they’re almost always subsidized by cities.

Dial Realty Corp. of Omaha has also paired up with a national company with experience building multiuse facilities in midsize communities. Dial has long worked with Kansas developer Harpool, Morgan Haney, which is working with Global Entertainment Corp. of Phoenix on an event center in Independence, Mo.

They proposed a publicly financed multiuse arena and entertainment and dining facilities nearby. Dial Principal Rick Kiolbasa said they have clients interested in building a 50,000- to 60,000-square-foot entertainment facility such as Dave & Buster’s, which serves food and drinks and has games.

Dial and Global have had preliminary discussions about teaming up on a master plan with John Q. Hammons Hotels, which likely proposed a hotel and/or convention center. The two entities have co-located in other areas.

Global is known for developing multiuse facilities in markets of 200,000 to a million. The company was originally established as an owner and franchisor of minor professional league hockey teams, and it still franchises hockey teams and operates the Central Hockey League.

Kiolbasa said the company “certainly has the ability to bring a Central Hockey League team” to Lincoln, which would help keep the arena busy.

Dial also brings experience putting together financing packages, Kiolbasa said. No longer are cities restricted to general obligation bonds to pay for arenas; there are many other ways to generate cash for an arena, he said.

Local real estate developers Will and Robert Scott of WRK LLC also put in a proposal. In the past half dozen years, the twin brothers have become a major player in Lincoln development,  particularly downtown. But this is one of the biggest projects they’ve embarked upon.

“Ultimately we want the leadership and the strength to come from Lincoln and be for Lincoln,” Will Scott said of their decision to make a proposal. He said their proposal addresses “sensitive local issues” such as environmental and historical issues at the proposed site.

He wouldn’t discuss details of the proposal, but said, “I can promise you, it’s gonna be cool.”

Representatives of the other two development teams could not be reached for comment, but HOK Sport bills itself as the world’s leading sports architecture firm. The company recently designed a new Orlando Events Center and has designed major and minor league baseball parks and sports stadiums.

A mayoral selection committee has exclusive access to the proposals and will recommend its preferred proposal to the mayor.

The city expects to choose a proposal within six weeks and negotiate an agreement with the developer by late 2008 or early 2009.

Reach Deena Winter at 473-2642 or dwinter@journalstar.com.