The Pittsburgh-Allegheny County Sports and Exhibition Authority has secured all the property it needs for a new arena and is on pace to begin demolition and site preparation in January.

SEA board members today approved a $3.6 million settlement with the Laborers District Council of Western Pennsylvania for the purchase of its headquarters property on Fifth Avenue and Congress Street in Uptown and ratified a second purchase with another property owner for $550,000 to complete the acquisitions.

The moves give the authority control over 10 properties bordering Fifth and Centre avenues and Colwell Street that will be part of the site for the new arena, whose construction is crucial to keeping the Penguins in Pittsburgh. The SEA paid $15 million to buy the properties. The total includes relocation costs.

SEA Executive Director Mary Conturo said the completion of the acquisitions will allow the authority to begin demolition of buildings on the arena site in January. It hopes to have all site preparation done by summer, for a start of construction July 1.

The authority and the Penguins still must work out an arrangement to demolish the team-owned former St. Francis Central Hospital on Centre Avenue. The old facility occupies a large chunk of the arena site.

As the SEA board was taking action, Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl and county Chief Executive Dan Onorato spoke with National Hockey League Commissioner Gary Bettman to update him on the progress toward a new arena and to extend an invitation to tour the site. That is expected to happen the next time Mr. Bettman is in town, said Kevin Evanto, spokesman for Mr. Onorato.

"It was a brief conversation but a positive one," Mr. Evanto said.

The public officials are hoping the construction of the arena will keep the team in Pittsburgh under new owner Jim Balsillie.