| Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum | |
|---|---|
| Location | 1826 West McDowell Road, Phoenix, Arizona 85007 |
| Opened | November 3, 1965 |
| Construction cost | $7 million USD (est.) ($48.7 million in 2012 dollars[1]) |
| Capacity | Basketball: 14,870 Ice hockey: 13,730 |
| Tenants | |
| Phoenix Suns (NBA) (1968–1992) Phoenix Roadrunners (WHA) (1974–1977) Phoenix Inferno (MISL) (1980–1984) Phoenix Mustangs (WCHL) (1997–2001) Phoenix Eclipse (ABA) (2001–2002) Arizona Thunder (WISL) (1998–2000) Arizona Derby Dames (roller derby) (2009– ) |
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The Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum is a 14,870-seat multi-purpose indoor arena in Phoenix, Arizona, USA, located on the grounds of the Arizona State Fair. It is commonly referred to as simply the Coliseum or Vets.
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Newspaper reports state that The Arizona State Fair Commission began planning for an "Arizona State Fairgrounds Exposition Center" as early as the fall of 1962. The Commission envisioned an indoor facility which could be used during the State Fair as well as year-round. In 1964, Phoenix architect Leslie Mahoney presented the commission with the final plans, and construction began that summer. Tucson architect Lew Place was also involved in the design, and the structural engineering firm was T. Y. Lin International.
The unique saddle-shaped, tension-cable roof, supporting over 1000 precast concrete panels, was considered innovative architectural engineering at the time. The building also contains a series of murals by Phoenix artist Paul Coze. The design influenced later arenas' architecture, including the Capital Centre in Washington, D.C. and the Pengrowth Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta.
In April 1965, the name was officially changed to honor Arizona's war veterans.
There was an early controversy over whether alcohol would be served at the new facility, but legislation was signed in April 1965 by Governor Sam Goddard providing for limited liquor sales.
The Coliseum opened November 3, 1965, with a production of Ice Follies. The final cost was estimated at $7 million.
On January 21, 1967, The Monkees performed a concert at AVMC, which was filmed and portions used in episode 4753 The Monkees on Tour. The episode first aired on NBC, April 24, 1967. The episode also included some footage of the band's stay at Mountain Shadows Resort.[2]
On October 18th, 1993 Nirvana kicked off their In Utero world tour with a sold-out concert at AVMC.
This distinctive arena with its saddle-shaped roof, which sat 13,730 for ice hockey and 14,870 for basketball, was the home of the Phoenix Roadrunners of the Western Hockey League from 1967-'74 and the WHA from 1974–1977 and of the now-defunct International Hockey League from 1989 to 1996, the Phoenix Suns of the NBA from 1968–1992, the Arizona Thunder of the World Indoor Soccer League from 1998-2000, and the Phoenix Mustangs of the now-defunct WCHL from 1999-2000. The Coliseum was again home to pro sports starting in 2006, when the IBL's Phoenix Flame played home games there until their move to Grand Canyon University. During the Suns' tenure there, the Coliseum was affectionately referred to as "The Mad House on McDowell (named for McDowell Road, the street in Phoenix where it is located) by both fans and the local media.
The Coliseum currently hosts the Arizona Derby Dames banked track roller derby league.
The arena hosted truck pulling sanctioned by USHRA in the late 1980s. It was frequently featured on USHRA's truck pulling series on ESPN.
The Coliseum also housed the Phoenix Inferno (also known as the Phoenix Pride) of the MISL from 1980 to 1984.
The Coliseum also hosted a Saturday Night's Main Event taping on Feb. 15, 1986 (shown on NBC on March 1, 1986) when King Kong Bundy attacked Hulk Hogan at the end of his title defense versus Magnificent Muraco. Hogan suffered (kayfabe) rib injuries, setting up their steel cage main event match at Wrestlemania 2.
It hosted the 1975 NBA All-Star Game and WCW WrestleWar 1991. The Coliseum was also host to the Phoenix Mustangs hockey team as part of the West Coast Hockey League and the Phoenix Eclipse ABA basketball team. The ABA will return to the Coliseum, as the Phoenix Phantoms have selected that arena as one of their three venues.
The arena remains open for some events, even though the Suns left in 1992 for the America West Arena (now US Airways Center). The Arizona State Fair schedules concerts, comedy shows and other events in the Coliseum during the Fair's annual season (which begins each October). Until recently it hosted portions of Arizona's high school basketball championships, but those have been moved to the newer Jobing.com Arena.
In the fall of 2005, the Coliseum sheltered up to 2,500 evacuees from New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. The evacuees were relocated to other housing in time for the opening of the Fair that October.
On January 28, 2008, presidential candidate Barack Obama held a rally at the Coliseum. Arizona governor Janet Napolitano and Caroline Kennedy were both part of the rally.
| Events and tenants | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by first arena |
Home of the Phoenix Suns 1968 – 1992 |
Succeeded by US Airways Center |
| Preceded by Seattle Center Coliseum |
Host of the NBA All-Star Game 1975 |
Succeeded by The Spectrum |
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