Quicken Loans Arena
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| "The Q" | |
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| Former names | Gund Arena (1994-2005) |
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| Location | 1 Center Court Cleveland, Ohio 44115-4001 |
| Coordinates | 41°29′47″N 81°41′17″W / 41.49639°N 81.68806°WCoordinates: 41°29′47″N 81°41′17″W / 41.49639°N 81.68806°W |
| Broke ground | April 27, 1992 |
| Opened | October 17, 1994 |
| Owner | Gateway Economic Development Corp. |
| Operator | CAVS/Quicken Loans Arena Company |
| Construction cost | US$100 million |
| Architect | Ellerbe Becket |
| Capacity | 20,562 |
| Tenants | |
| Cleveland Cavaliers (NBA) (1994-present) Lake Erie Monsters (AHL) (2007-present) Cleveland Gladiators (AFL) (2008-present) Cleveland Rockers (WNBA) (1997-2003) Cleveland Barons (AHL) (2001-2006) Cleveland Lumberjacks (IHL) (1994-2001) |
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Quicken Loans Arena (also referred to as "The Q") is a multipurpose arena in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. Until August 2005, it was known as Gund Arena, named for Gordon Gund, a former owner of the Cavaliers, after he paid for the naming rights. It is home to the Cleveland Cavaliers of the NBA, the Lake Erie Monsters of the AHL, and the Cleveland Gladiators of the AFL. It was previously home of the now-defunct Cleveland Lumberjacks of the IHL, the Cleveland Barons of the AHL, and the Cleveland Rockers of the WNBA. The arena was opened with a concert by Billy Joel on October 17, 1994; the Cavaliers played the first game in the arena a few weeks later. It is owned by the Gateway Economic Development Corporation, which leases it to the Cavaliers.
On May 16, 2006, the then-inactive Utah Grizzlies franchise of the AHL announced that it would move to the Quicken Loans Arena. On January 25, 2007, the team name was announced as the Lake Erie Monsters.[1] It began play in the 2007-2008 season.
On October 16, 2007, the Las Vegas Gladiators of the Arena Football League announced that they would move to Quicken Loans Arena.
The arena replaced the Coliseum at Richfield, which was located south of Cleveland near Akron. Part of the Gateway Project to revitalize downtown Cleveland, the arena and neighboring Progressive Field were paid for with a sin tax on alcohol and tobacco.[2] In 2005, Cavaliers majority owner Dan Gilbert (owner of Quicken Loans) renovated the arena, installing new seats, state of the art scoreboards, video systems, sound systems, arena graphics, signage, security, locker rooms, and suite upgrades, all of which were in place for the start of the Cavaliers 2005-2006 season, except for the seats, which were replaced a few sections at a time.
"The Q" seats 20,562 for basketball, including 2,000 in the club seats, and 92 luxury suites. In addition to its professional sports tenants, "The Q" has been home to the Mid-American Conference's men's basketball tournament since 2000 and the MAC women's basketball tournament since 2001. "MAC Madness", as it is known, has become a strong draw for the arena. The men's semifinal and championship games routinely draw 10,000-15,000 attendees.
Additionally, the arena was the site of WWF SummerSlam 1996, the 2000 US Figure Skating Championships, WWF No Mercy 1999, WWF Invasion, Survivor Series 2004, several episodes of Raw, Friday Night SmackDown!, and ECW on Sci Fi. It also hosted WWE Unforgiven (2008). Major national events held at the facility include the 1997 NBA All-Star Game, the 2007 NCAA Women's Final Four, and the United States Figure Skating Championships 2009. It hosted games 3 and 4 of the 2007 NBA Finals.
On October 29, 2008, LeBron James gathered almost 20,000 people at the arena for a viewing of Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama's 30-minute American Stories, American Solutions television advertisement. It was shown on a large screen above the stage, where Jay-Z later held a free concert.[3]
On August 12,2005 Destiny's Child Brought Their "Destiny Fulfilled And Lovin It Tour". Which they performed for a sold out crowd.
On August 19,2007 Beeyonce brought her highly anticipated "The Beyonce Experience Tour" to cleveland. And Perfromed for an 88% filled crowd.
[edit] References
- ^ American Hockey League, Lake Erie Monsters coming ashore this fall 2007-01-25.
- ^ Stoffel, Jennifer (1990-06-13). "Real Estate; New Sports Complex for Cleveland". New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0CE2DC1F31F930A25755C0A966958260. Retrieved on 2008-11-05.
- ^ "Jay-Z, LeBron James get out vote for Obama". MSNBC. 2008-10-30. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27455428/.
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Quicken Loans Arena |
| Preceded by Richfield Coliseum |
Home of the Cleveland Cavaliers 1994 – present |
Succeeded by current |
| Preceded by Orleans Arena |
Home of the Cleveland Gladiators 2008 – present |
Succeeded by current |
| Preceded by SeaGate Convention Centre |
Host of the Mid-American Conference Men's Basketball Tournament 2000 – present |
Succeeded by current |
| Preceded by Alamodome |
Host of the NBA All-Star Game 1997 |
Succeeded by Madison Square Garden |
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