WFCU Centre

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
WFCU Centre
Full name Windsor Family Credit Union Centre
Location 8787 McHugh St
Coordinates 42°19′07″N 82°55′40″W / 42.3186°N 82.9279°W / 42.3186; -82.9279
Broke ground January 22, 2007[1]
Built 2007–2008
Opened December 11, 2008
Owner City of Windsor
Operator City of Windsor / Global Spectrum Facility Management
Scoreboard 8 sided, 24 feet in diameter
Construction cost C$71 million[1]
($76.5 million in 2014 dollars[ 1])
Architect BBB Architects, Ltd.
Structural engineer HGS Consulting Engineers Ltd.[2]
Services engineer Vollmer & Associates[3]
General contractor PCR Contractors
Capacity 6,500
Field dimensions 302,000 square feet
Tenants
Windsor Spitfires (OHL) (2008-Present) Windsor Express (NBLC) (2012-Present)

The WFCU Centre is a sports-entertainment centre in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. It opened on December 11, 2008, and it is named after the Windsor Family Credit Union, a local financial institution. It is located in the east end of the city, northeast of the intersection of Tecumseh and Lauzon Roads.

The WFCU Centre was built, in part, to be the new home of the city's Ontario Hockey League team, the Windsor Spitfires, replacing the 84-year-old Windsor Arena.

Ownership and management

The WFCU Centre is owned by the City of Windsor. City council approved the project on October 4, 2006, and the groundbreaking ceremony took place on January 22, 2007. The WFCU Centre is managed by Ed Snider's Comcast Spectacor, a Philadelphia-based company, which also operates more than 100 other arenas, stadiums and convention centres including the Wachovia Center in Philly.

Seating and ticketing

Approximate capacities:

  • 6,500 - Hockey
  • 7,000 - Basketball
  • 8,000 - End stage concert
  • 3,000 – Small concert stage
  • 2,100 - Theatre mode
  • 7,500 - Centre stage concert

In addition to the standard end stage configuration for large concerts, the arena can be set up to accommodate touring Broadway shows or smaller concerts in its theatre mode. The theatre mode features a small, intimate atmosphere.

The centre features 35 luxury suites and more than 600 club seats.

The WFCU Centre complies with the Ontarians with Disabilities Act.

The WFCU Centre uses an in-house system, provided by New Era Tickets.

History

The WFCU Centre was built at a cost of approximately $71 million by the Windsor, Ontario-based construction company, PCR Contractors. The land was purchased from London, Ontario developer Farhi Holdings Corporation. The construction of this sports-entertainment centre was decided upon as a part of the city government’s overall effort to add excitement to the economy. As part of that effort, Windsor city council committed to building the centre, and agreed to fund most of the cost.

During the initial stages of planning, several other committees and companies proposed building arenas and venues in the area, including a privately owned skating arena, as well as proposed a relocation of the Windsor Raceway Slots to Tecumseh, Ontario, owned by the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation.

Some of the WFCU Centre's higher profile events include:

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Arena Kickoff Ends 30 Years of Waiting". Windsor Star. January 22, 2007. Retrieved January 26, 2007. 
  2. ↑ "Windsor Family Credit Centre". HGS Consulting Engineers Ltd. Retrieved October 17, 2013. 
  3. ↑ "Commercial". Vollmer & Associates. Retrieved October 17, 2013. 

External links

Current arenas in the Ontario Hockey League1
Eastern
Conference
Western
Conference
1All arenas are in Ontario unless otherwise noted.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike; additional terms may apply for the media files.