| ||
| Location: | 701 Arena Boulevard (formerly) Miami, Florida | |
|---|---|---|
| Owner: | City of Miami (1998-2004) Arena Ventures LLC. (2004-2008) | |
| Operator: | Miami Sports and Entertainment Authority | |
| Capacity: | 17,000 | |
| Construction information | ||
| Broke ground: | August 4, 1986 | |
| Opened: | July 13, 1988 | |
| Closed: | July 2008 | |
| Demolished: | October 2008 | |
| Cost: | $52 million | |
| Tenants | ||
| Miami Heat (NBA) (1988-1999) Miami Hurricanes (NCAA) (1988-2003) | ||
| Notable events | ||
The Miami Arena was an indoor arena in Miami, Florida that was home to the Miami Heat from 1988 to 1999 and the Miami Hurricanes from 1988 to 2003.
History[]
Completed in 1988, at a cost of $52.5 million, its opening took business away from the Hollywood Sportatorium and eventually led to its demise. The arena was the home of the Miami Heat from 1988–1999, the Florida Panthers from 1993–1998, the University of Miami basketball teams from 1988–2003, the Miami Hooters of the Arena Football League from 1993–1995, the Miami Matadors of the ECHL in 1998, the Miami Manatees of the WHA2 in 2003, and the Miami Morays indoor football team since 2005. The first match played by the Heat in their first home was lost against the Los Angeles Clippers 111-91 on November 5, 1988, the first victory came a month and a half later against the Utah Jazz to 101-80.
It also hosted the 1990 NBA All-Star Game, the 1991 WWF Royal Rumble, the 1994 NCAA Men's Basketball East Regional Final and the NHL's 1996 Stanley Cup Finals. The 2001 Christmas Eve episode of WWF Monday Night Raw featuring The Rock was also held here.
By the late 1990s, the Miami Arena, like most indoor sports arenas built in the late 1970s and 1980s, began to show its age. Its seating capacity was one of the lowest of any NBA or NHL arena. In addition, sports teams in general began wanting newer, more updated facilities, specifically luxury suites and new concessions. On January 2, 2000, the Heat moved to the American Airlines Arena (now Kaseya Center) located three blocks east of Miami Arena on the shore of Biscayne Bay. The Panthers also left Miami Arena to play at what is now the BankAtlantic Center located in Sunrise, Florida right near Florida's largest outlet mall, Sawgrass Mills.
Most of the concerts that were held at Miami Arena are now held at newer venues, including the BankAtlantic Center, American Airlines Arena, or the Seminole Hard Rock Casino in Hollywood, Florida.
Since then, the arena became mostly inactive. The arena was sold in a public auction in 2004 to Glenn Straub, an investor from Palm Beach County, Florida, for $24 million less than the $52 million the city of Miami paid for its original construction. Miami Arena was sometimes called the "Pink Elephant", because it was a white elephant with pink colored walls.
The arena was easily accessible via mass transit, with a Metrorail stop at Historic Overtown/Lyric Theater station just across the street (once known as Overtown/Arena station). Miami-Dade city buses also service the arena area downtown.
On August 3, 2008, Straub announced in a television interview that the interior of the arena had been cleared out and that the building would be demolished by the end of the month. On September 21, 2008, the roof of the Miami Arena was imploded. While the exterior walls remained standing after the implosion, demolition continued until the falling of the west wall on October 21, 2008.
Seating capacity[]
- Basketball: 15,008 (1988-1993), 15,200 (1993-2008)
- Ice hockey and arena football: 14,703
- End-stage concerts: 5,723 and 16,508
- Half-house concerts: between 6,351 and 9,120
- Amphitheatre concerts: 6,380
- Theater concerts: 3,642
- Banquets: 500
References[]
1. ^ "Miami Arena" Ballparks.com. Retrieved on 2009-07-21.