The View Has a New State-of-the-Art Studio for Season 28: See Inside with PEOPLE's Exclusive First Look Photos

The View's co-hosts are going to take a little time to enjoy a brand new view when the hit daytime series returns for season 28 on Tuesday, Sept. 3.

Whoopi Goldberg, Joy Behar, Sara Haines, Sunny Hostin, Ana Navarro and Alyssa Farah Griffin will all be back for another season of Hot Topics. And while the iconic table remains the same, everything else around them has had a major upgrade.

PEOPLE has an exclusive first look inside The View's new swanky state-of-the-art studio, located in the Walt Disney Company’s recently completed 22-story Manhattan headquarters in Hudson Square.

The show is the first of ABC's to make the movie to the building, though won't be the last. Good Morning America, Live with Kelly and Mark and Tamron Hall are all expected to follow in the coming months.

"It says a lot about Barbara Walters' original vision and the foundation they built that nearly three decades later, the show is not just more relevant that ever but the cornerstone of this exciting new venture by Disney," executive producer Brian Teta tells PEOPLE. "It really is an honor."

On a visit to the studio late last month, PEOPLE saw the technology at play first-hand, which will give the control room the ability to tap into unparalleled creative freedom and production flexibility.

The room is covered in LED screens, including a floor that with the flick of a button can go from a herringbone wood pattern to images of flowing lava or an ocean swimming with sharks.

"Our graphics team is like kids in the candy store right now," says Teta. "There's so much that we're still going to need to get acclimated with and play with. I think at first, it'll be The View you know and love, but as time goes on, we'll have a lot of fun with some of the things we can do."

The set's cool color palette is similar to what fans have seen in recent seasons, with the addition of new elevated furniture to punch it up.

"We kept the table, because that was new last year, and that remains the centerpiece as always," Teta explains. "But at the same time, everything around it is new and modern and sleek. It makes it familiar to what people like about The View, but also elevates it to the next level."

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The biggest change is a new two-story structure with a wrap-around staircase and an upper-level balcony. "The original set for The View was a loft, so there's a definite callback to that," Teta says. "And it's a place where I know we can play."

Teta is vague about what the structure will eventually be used for, suggesting everything from musical performances introductions to interview segments. Goldberg might even appear there at the top of Tuesday's premiere.

"We could put a DJ up there, there might be a reason to have guests up there, I can put Statler and Waldorf from the Muppets up there..." he teases. "We plan on having a lot of fun with it."

Perhaps for the most important new addition are six new teal chairs, which Teta says was the hardest thing to agree on because the co-hosts are so opinionated.

"Listen, the great and difficult thing about this show is that they are built to be different perspectives. It's built into the hard wiring of what this show is," Teta said. "It's different people with different backgrounds, different perspectives, different ages — all those things. So getting them to agree on anything is a challenge, even seats. But it's also what makes the show so special."

As for the audience, though the new studio seats a hair fewer people, Teta notes there's still over 100 spots for fans and the distance from the hosts are still the same, so it still feels intimate.

"In fact, my podium is closer than ever before, so that's probably going to be my biggest adjustment," Teta says. "Towards the end of last season, a couple of times, I was talking to the control room and Whoopi would turn and say, 'You know, I just heard you.' So I got to soften my voice a little bit."

Overall, Teta — who marks his 10th season with The View this year — says he's beyond impressed with the studio overall.

"I've been in television for 25 years and it's one of the only times where I've been shown the plans for something and it's not only met the original vision, but really exceeded it." says Teta. "It's really terrific."

"We looked at this, I think six months ago and I was like, 'Yeah, sure, if that actually happens, that will be phenomenal.' And then to walk in here and see what they've put together? It's really just such a phenomenal marvel of engineering and such a credit to the people who designed this, the crew who installed it, and everybody else involved."

The View's studio isn't the only thing getting an upgrade for season 28. The show's official podcast, Behind the Table, will have a brand new studio too.

"We're really excited about that," says Teta, who hosts the series. "We're going to have an actual set and video, which is terrific because we'll be able to post full episodes on YouTube for the first time, in addition to streaming podcast platforms."

The podcast often features the co-hosts themselves, expanding on hot topics and also opening up about their own personal lives. Occasionally, guests from the main show stop by, too.

"We'll try to bring in more guests throughout the season, because we've had a lot of fun doing that. But the co-hosts are our staple and they really love the show, despite them complaining constantly about it on air," Teta laughs. "It's nice for them. They get to speak uninterrupted and dive a little bit deeper on some of the topics that we don't necessarily the chance to do on the show."

This aims to be a banner year for The View, which isn't just the most watched daytime talk show on TV but watched more than any other talk show in America, including late night.

Once dubbed by the New York Times "the most important political show in America," the daytime show especially thrives in an election year and has a slew of political guests lined up for its first two weeks back.

Among them include Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson (Wednesday, Sept. 4:), Gov. Josh Shapiro (Friday, Sept. 6) and Rep. Nancy Pelosi (Monday, Sept. 9).

"It's under 70 days to the election and I couldn't be more fired up." Teta tells PEOPLE. "I know we've said this a couple of times in the past, but this is potentially the most consequential election in American history. And I'm excited to see who's going to come through the doors and be a guest in the next 70 days."

The table has hosted every major political candidate in the past three decades. "No one has been elected president since George W. Bush without appearing on The View first," Teta says. "Even Trump in 2015 made a phone call. So the road to the White House goes through The View."

And just because The View co-hosts have been on break for the past few weeks doesn't mean they're not fired up and ready to go.

"Everyone does their best to unplug for our vacation weeks, but I heard from the co-hosts constantly on a text chain, having their own Hot Topics arguments privately," Teta says. "I'm like, 'No one's paying you right now, guys. Just enjoy your vacation!' But they can't turn it off."

That's why the first show back will be a full day of Hot Topics.

"When we left the show, we didn't know who the Democratic vice presidential nominee was. There hadn't even been a Democratic convention yet. So there's so much to talk about," Teta explains. "So we're just going to let it rip."

The View airs weekdays (11 a.m. ET) on ABC.