College Park Center
| UT Arlington College Park Center | |
|---|---|
| CPC | |
 | |
| Location |
601 S. Pecan St. Arlington, TX 76019 |
| Broke ground | March 5, 2010 |
| Opened | February 1, 2012 |
| Owner | University of Texas at Arlington |
| Operator | University of Texas at Arlington |
| Surface | Hardwood |
| Construction cost | US$78 million |
| Architect | HKS, Inc.[1] |
| Capacity | 7,000 |
| Tenants | |
| University of Texas at Arlington Mavericks basketball teams | |
The College Park Center is an indoor, multi-purpose arena on the University of Texas at Arlington campus in Arlington, Texas.[2][3]
Its primary tenant is the Mavericks athletic department and the basketball and volleyball teams, as they play their games in the new venue. It seats up to 7,000 spectators. It also hosts graduation ceremonies, concerts and speakers. On February 17, 2012 it hosted boxing as part of ESPN's Friday Night Fights series.
The arena is part of a 20 acre section of the campus known as the College Park District. Completed in 2012, it includes a residence hall, student apartments, a 4.62 acre park called The Green at College Park, restaurants, and several parking garages.[4]
History
College Park Center replaced Texas Hall as the home of the Mavericks athletics teams. Ground breaking occurred on March 5, 2010. In the fall of 2010, the University received a $5 million gift towards completion of the arena by Carrizo Oil & Gas, Inc.[5] (Carrizo is drilling several gas wells on the UTA campus). The grand opening of the facility was held on February 1, 2012 with a doubleheader of UT Arlington basketball when the women and men both defeated UT San Antonio in front of a then-record crowd of 6,228.[6] At that time, it was the largest attended basketball game on the campus of UTA. The next three games at CPC would have also set that record had they occurred in any other previous year.
The men's basketball team has a record of 11–8 (through the end of the 2012/13 season) at College Park Center since it opened with four games remaining in the 2011–12 season. The women's team is 4–15 while the volleyball team is 16–16 (through the end of the 2013 season), its first full season coming in 2012.
College Park Center serves as anchor to the College Park District, which includes student housing, retail and restaurant offerings, a park and two parking garages. The district spans more than 20 acres and cost a total of US$160 million.[4] The College Park District is envisioned as a catalyst to revitalize downtown Arlington by the leaders at City Hall.
Features
College Park Center is divided into two concourses. The lower surrounds the court/performance area while the upper section is shaped like a horseshoe. CPC features 7,000 chair-back seats and suites above the lower sections opposite the scorers table. The center-hung scoreboard is a four-sided Daktronics 13' X 9' with LED displays while an end-hung scoreboard is an 11' X 19' Daktronics LED display. Two LED display ribbon boards circle the bottom of the balcony seating. At the scorers table are four Daktronics LED display tables linked together to display messages and advertising.
Underneath the lower concourse contain state-of-the-art sports medicine and training facilities, two full-sized practice courts, a full-sized weight room, an academic support study center containing a study hall, computer lab, group study room, and areas for academic advising for UTA's student athletes and practice courts for the volleyball and basketball teams.
CPC also houses most of the athletic department, who relocated from the Gilstrap Athletic Center at Maverick Stadium to the arena when it opened.
Attendance
During the 2011–12 basketball season, UTA averaged 821 for Texas Hall while the last four games averaged 5,079 at CPC, an average of 2,131 for the season. For the 2012–13 season, UTA averaged 1,968 over 15 games, including the first basketball postseason game on campus, as the Mavericks were invited to participate in the 2013 CIT tournament.
 |
The dedication ceremony between the women's and men's game on CPC's opening night. |
| Attendance | Opponent | Date | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6,421 | Oklahoma^ | Nov 16, 2012 | 59-63 |
| 2 | 6,228 | UTSA | Feb 1, 2012 | 67-66 |
| 3 | 5,272 | Texas State | Feb 11, 2012 | 73-53 |
| 4 | 4,837 | Utah State | March 2, 2013 | 61-46 |
| 5 | 4,824 | Cleveland State^ | Nov 15, 2013 | 73-83 |
| 6 | 4,707 | Northwestern State | Feb 25, 2012 | 79-70 |
| 7 | 4,109 | Texas A&M–Corpus Christi | Feb 29, 2012 | 78-64 |
| 8 | 2,896 | South Alabama | Jan 25, 2014 | 73-65 |
| 9 | 2,247 | Troy | Jan 23, 2014 | 59-53 |
| 10 | 2,112 | UTSA | Feb 9, 2013 | 68-63 |
^ Denotes Homecoming game
CPC has completely sold out three times, all of them concerts. Drake held the 1st concert ever, which was not open to the public, but rather to the UTA students and faculty, with 7,000 in attendance. The other two sellouts belong to Reach Records, as both Unashamed Tour shows in 2012 and 2013 surpassed 7,000 in attendance respectively.
Accolades
The U.S. Green Building Council recognized CPC with a LEED Gold certification. [7]
In February 2012, the center was featured in a Billboard Magazine article about ten new and renovated venues were reshaping the national touring circuit.[8]
Events
ESPN Friday Night at the Fights, February 17, 2012.[9]
Drake, Club Paradise tour, March 3, 2012.[10]
Jeb Bush, Maverick Speaker Series, March 23, 2012.[11]
On June 10, 2012, the center hosted TNA Wrestling's Slammiversary pay per view, which celebrated the 10th anniversary of the organization.[12]
Passion Pit, September 2012.[13]
TobyMac, Eye on It Tour, October 2012.
Unashamed Tour 2012: Come Alive (Reach Records), featuring Lecrae, Trip Lee, Tedashii, KB, PRo, Andy Mineo, and special guests Thi'sl and Propaganda, October 27, 2012
Unashamed Tour V (2013) featuring Lecrae, Tedashii, Derek Minor, KB, and Andy Mineo, November 23, 2013
References
- ↑ university of texas arlington specials events center architect: HKS, Inc.
- ↑ About the Center – College Park Center
- ↑ UT-Arlington to build $73 million events facility
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 College Park District
- ↑ Carrizo makes historic gift to support UT Arlington special events center
- ↑ Celebrate College Park – The University of Texas at Arlington
- ↑ http://www.uta.edu/collegeparkdistrict/college-park-center/index.php
- ↑ Waddell, Ray (February 22, 2012). ["http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/touring/how-ten-new-or-renovated-venues-are-reshaping-1006254952.story "How Ten New or Renovated Venues are Reshaping the Nations Touring Circuit"]. Billboard Magazine. Retrieved 2012-06-16.
- ↑ "ESPN Friday Night at the Fights at UT Arlington". February 17, 2012. Retrieved 2012-06-16.
- ↑ "Drake Christens UTA's College Park". March 3, 2012. Retrieved 2012-06-16.
- ↑ "Jeb Bush Maverick Speaker Series Highlights". March 23, 2012. Retrieved 2012-06-16.
- ↑ Caldwell, James (March 18, 2012). "Location for TNA's Slammiversary PPV". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved 2012-03-23.
- ↑ "Passion Pit to perform September 14 at UT Arlington's College Park". June 11, 2012. Retrieved 2012-06-16.
External links
- College Park Center
- The University of Texas at Arlington
- The University of Texas at Arlington Mavericks
- UTAMavericks – Fan Site
| Events and tenants | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Impact Wrestling Zone |
Host of Slammiversary 2012 (X) |
Succeeded by Agganis Arena |
Coordinates: 32°43′50″N 97°06′29″W / 32.730586°N 97.107972°W
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