CenturyLink Center Omaha

CenturyLink Center Omaha

The CenturyLink Center in 2012
Former names Qwest Center Omaha (2003–2011)
Location 455 North 10th Street
Omaha, Nebraska 68102
Coordinates 41°15′45.60″N 95°55′41.54″W / 41.2626667°N 95.9282056°WCoordinates: 41°15′45.60″N 95°55′41.54″W / 41.2626667°N 95.9282056°W
Owner Metropolitan Entertainment & Convention Authority (MECA)[1]
Operator Metropolitan Entertainment & Convention Authority (MECA)[1]
Capacity 18,975 (center-stage concerts)
18,100 (end-stage concerts)
18,320 (basketball)
17,100 (hockey)[2]
Surface Multi-surface
Construction
Broke ground March 1, 2001[3]
Opened September 24, 2003[1]
Expanded 2006
Construction cost $291 million
($373 million in 2015 dollars[4])
Architect DLR Group
Structural engineer Thornton Tomasetti[5]
Services engineer M–E Engineers, Inc.[6]
General contractor Kiewit Construction Co.[1]
Tenants
Creighton Bluejays men's basketball (2003–present)
Omaha Mavericks men's ice hockey (2003–2015)
Website
www.centurylinkcenteromaha.com

CenturyLink Center is an arena and convention center facility in the North Downtown neighborhood in Omaha, Nebraska. The 1.1 million ft² facility has an 18,975-seat arena, a 194,000-ft² exhibition hall and 62,000 ft² of meeting space.

The arena opened in 2003 as Qwest Center Omaha. It adopted its current name on July 15, 2011[7] as part of a $22 billion buyout of Qwest by CenturyLink (formerly CenturyTel).[8] All signage, inside and outside, was changed to conform to the new arena name; lighting was also switched (from blue to green). The transition was expected to be completed by August 1, 2011; the outside name changes were finally completed on December 20, 2011.

The arena hosts various basketball games, hockey games, professional wrestling events and concerts. Another notable event held there is the annual shareholders' meeting of Omaha-based conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway, usually held on the first Saturday of the month of May.

The arena's primary tenant is the Creighton University men's basketball team. Through the 2014–15 NCAA ice hockey season, the Omaha Mavericks men's team, representing the University of Nebraska Omaha, was also a primary tenant, but the Mavericks are moving to a new arena for the 2015–16 season.[9]

History

In 2000, Omaha voters approved a $216 million bond issue to build a new convention center and arena; the remainder of the $291 million project was provided by private organizations and individuals. The facility design was led by architectural firm DLR Group. Naming rights to the arena were purchased by Qwest.

Qwest Center Omaha opened in September 2003 with an initial seating capacity of 17,000 for concerts, 15,500 for basketball, and 14,700 for hockey. In 2006, a $5.7-million expansion of the arena increased capacity by approximately 1,500 seats.

The Qwest Center displaced the 1954 Omaha Civic Auditorium as the premier indoor arena in the city. The venerable Ak-Sar-Ben Coliseum was closed in 2002 and was demolished in 2005.

The arena hosted games in the first and second rounds of the 2008 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, the 2010 NCAA Men's Division I Wrestling Championships, and the 2012 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament. It was also home to the WWE Judgment Day 2008 pay-per-view, as well as other events from WWE.

The 2008 USA Swimming Summer Olympic Trials were hosted over eight days at the Qwest Center and on June 29, 2009 it was announced the trials would return again in 2012. The 2008 event averaged more than 12,000 spectators each night.[10]

A portion of the roof, "The Hat", was damaged by a storm on June 27, 2008. There was no structural damage, but the damage caused water to pour into parts of the Qwest Center, flowed down two sets of arena steps and onto the deck of the competition pool for the USA Swimming Summer Olympic Trials. The schedule for the trials went on as planned.[11]

In 2011 it was announced the name would be changed to CenturyLink Center Omaha. Following the name change, Lights were changed from blue to green, and new logos were also changed from Qwest Center Omaha to Century Link Center Omaha.

In 2012, Omaha's mayor announced that the Omaha Civic Auditorium would close in 2014 due to excessive maintenance costs. This eventually led to UNO deciding to build its own new arena to replace the Auditorium, as well as to provide a university-owned home for its hockey and basketball teams. The new facility, tentatively known as UNO Community Arena, is set to open in fall 2015.[9]

Tenants

Attendance history

Top 10 Largest Home Crowds at CenturyLink Center Omaha, Creighton History

Rank Attendance Opponent Result Date
1 18,868[12] Providence W 88–73 March 8, 2014
2 18,859[13] Georgetown W 76–63 January 25, 2014
3 18,797[14] Villanova W 101–80 February 16, 2014
4 18,742[15] Seton Hall W 72–71 February 23, 2014
5 18,735[16] Wichita State L 68–89 February 11, 2012
6 18,613[17] Wichita State W 91–79 March 2, 2013
7 18,525[18] Marquette W 67–49 December 31, 2013
8 18,494[19] Illinois State L 72–75 February 9, 2013
9 18,458[20] Evansville W 87–70 December 29, 2012
10 18,436[21] Bradley W 73–59 January 28, 2012

Records and milestones

On the evening of March 8, 2014, the largest crowd to attend a Creighton University basketball game occurred when 18,868 fans witnessed the Creighton men's team defeat Providence on Doug McDermott's career-high senior night performance of 45 points.[12]

On January 13, 2012, the largest crowd to ever watch a hockey game in Nebraska occurred when 16,138 fans attended the game between the University of Nebraska at Omaha and Minnesota-Duluth.[22]

The CenturyLink Center holds several NCAA attendance records, particularly in college volleyball. Qwest Center owns the top three NCAA tournament attendance record. The highest attendance to ever watch a volleyball match in the United States occurred when 17,340 fans watched the 2008 NCAA National Semifinal match between Penn State and Nebraska. The second highest attendance in NCAA tournament history occurred when 17,209 fans watched Nebraska defeat Stanford for the 2006 NCAA championship. For the 2008 NCAA National Championship, 14,299 people watched Penn State defeat Stanford, the third highest attendance in NCAA tournament history and just two days after the Qwest Center broke the attendance record for the semifinals.[23]

Qwest Center Omaha; view from the northwest corner.
Qwest Center Omaha
Qwest Center Omaha

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Broughton, David (November 23, 2003). "City Finishes Qwest for New Arena". SportsBusiness Journal. Retrieved January 6, 2014.
  2. ↑ "Arena: Specifications". CenturyLink Center Omaha. Retrieved March 20, 2015.
  3. ↑ "Arena Plans Take Next Step". KETV (Omaha). March 2, 2001. Retrieved February 13, 2012.
  4. ↑ Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–2014. Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved February 27, 2014.
  5. ↑ "Sports" (PDF). Thornton Tomasetti. Retrieved March 20, 2015.
  6. ↑ "Construction of Omaha Convention Center/Arena". Historic Omaha. Retrieved March 20, 2015.
  7. ↑ Robb, Jeffrey (July 15, 2011). "Qwest Center Gets New Name". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
  8. ↑ Boettcher, Ross (March 24, 2011). "New Name for Qwest Center". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "UNO Community Arena". University of Nebraska Omaha. Retrieved February 17, 2015.
  10. ↑ "U.S. Olympic Trials Will Return to Omaha in 2012". USA Swimming. June 25, 2009. Retrieved March 20, 2015.
  11. ↑ Harris, Beth (June 27, 2008). "Severe Storm in Omaha Damages Swimming Arena". USA Today. Retrieved January 6, 2014.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Pivovar, Steven (March 8, 2014). "Doug McDermott Passes 3,000 to the Delight of the Home Crowd". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved March 20, 2015.
  13. ↑ Pivovar, Steven (January 25, 2014). "Team Effort Lifts Bluejays in Annual Pink-Out Game". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved March 20, 2015.
  14. ↑ Pivovar, Steven (February 16, 2014). "Notes: Bluejays Give a Good Encore". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved March 20, 2015.
  15. ↑ Pivovar, Steven (February 23, 2014). "Misses at the Line Nearly Cost Jays Against Seton Hall". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved March 20, 2015.
  16. ↑ Suellentrop, Paul (February 11, 2012). "WSU Blasts Creighton, Take Control of MVC Race". The Wichita Eagle. Retrieved February 12, 2012.
  17. ↑ Pivovar, Steven (March 2, 2013). "Creighton Tops WSU to Take Missouri Valley Title". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved March 20, 2015.
  18. ↑ Pivovar, Steven (January 1, 2014). "Bluejays Show They Can Play a Little Defense, Too". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved March 20, 2015.
  19. ↑ "Men's Basketball Falls to Illinois State Before 18,494". Creighton University Department of Athletics. February 9, 2013. Retrieved March 20, 2015.
  20. ↑ Olson, Eric (December 29, 2012). "McDermott's 29 Keys No. 16 Creighton in 87-70 Win". KETV (Omaha). Associated Press. Retrieved March 20, 2015.
  21. ↑ Olson, Eric (January 29, 2012). "Struggling Bradley Loses 73–59 to No. 15 Creighton". The Boston Globe. Associated Press. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  22. ↑ Semisch, Matthew (January 13, 2012). "Brown’s Hat Trick Propels Minnesota-Duluth Over Nebraska-Omaha". U.S. College Hockey Online. Retrieved March 20, 2015.
  23. ↑ "2008 NCAA Women's Volleyball Championship Match Notes". Pennsylvania State University Department of Athletics. December 20, 2008. Retrieved January 6, 2014.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to CenturyLink Center Omaha.
Preceded by
Omaha Civic Auditorium		 Home of
Omaha Mavericks Men's Hockey
2003 – 2015 		Succeeded by
UNO Community Arena