HaHa, I've worked at 3 at of the facilities mentioned in this article, so I can provide some of my thoughts.
Coliseum (worked in operations): It is a nice facility. There is plenty of seating and the event areas are large enough for circuses, monster trucks and the ice rink allows both hockey and ice shows to be hosted at the coliseum. I've been involved with enough "changeovers" to know how really versatile the event floor can be. You can go from hockey to a stage performance to an ice show to a conference and back to hockey in a week. The problem is the seating area. While the bowl shape does help capacity there are a lot of blank areas right around the ends that are only filled in for basketball (or the floor is filled in for stage performances, conferences, etc.) In addition, many of the seats are worn out and routinely seats would have to be replaced after an event. The suites are small and don't have much table space for food and drinks. While there are some nice folding chairs, they still have a lot of old ones that fold in a weird fashion, the cushions are worn out and they break on a regular basis. The scoreboard is antiquated and it's most impressive feature is the fact they can change the team names. The patron areas show their years of use and anyone who has been to the arena lately comes out thinking, "what an old place".
John Paul Jones Arena (worked as construction worker): This is an impressive facility. It is well designed for basketball, stage performances and arena events. They can fold the student seating up for a stage area and it also opens up a large opening on the side which connects to overhead doors so you can easily move big stuff in and out during a performance. The lighting control system is fully integrated and all hallway, house and permanent sport/stage lighting can be controlled from a central station, as well as remote stations located in electrical closets. Even with a basketball capacity higher than the coliseum, their nosebleeds seem closer than the 300's in the coliseum. There are LED screens all around with both allow for atmosphere (ex. showing V-sabers), advertising and scoreboard. The suites are roomy and have plenty of table room for refreshments along with a mini fridge and microwave. I would not be disappointed if the coliseum was replaced by a similar building. Admittedly the whole bleacher folding thing may limit seating for events (I can't find capacity for JPJ with the seats folded.) And to get an event area just as big with the coliseum, the seats may be affected.
Richmond International Raceway (worked as security guard): There is little comparison to this and an arena. Although it is a great place for a race. The seats are bleachers since it is outside, but they do seem in better condition than the coliseum seats, albeit much less comfortable. The new scoring tower is amazing, as it uses LED screens to display various information (video feed, position, quickest speed, qualifying order, green, yellow, red, white and checker flag conditions). Parking is free and enough spots for everyone. Maybe I'm biased, but I do feel it offers one of the best fan experiences in NASCAR.
There's lots more to get into (concessions, bathrooms, etc) but I'm already running long.
