What is the Bobcats Arena?

ryanteaguebeckwith — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 14:35:51 -0500

Answer:

A sports and entertainment complex in uptown Charlotte.

The arena is home to a professional basketball team, the Charlotte Bobcats; and a minor league hockey team, the Charlotte Checkers. Major concerts are also held there regularly.

It has a total capacity of more than 20,000 seats.

Construction began on July 7, 2003, and the arena opened on Oct. 21, 2005, with a concert by the Rolling Stones. It was built by the city of Charlotte and is managed by Bobcats Sports & Entertainment, which is owned by Black Entertainment Television founder Robert L. Johnson.

Construction costs were around $200 million. In addition, the city also paid about $59 million for the land the arena sits on, though it has since sold some of the unneeded land.

In a 2006 interview, Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory said he did not know if illegal immigrant laborers helped build the arena.

An earlier attempt to build an arena fell through after Charlotte voters rejected a $342 million funding package on June 5, 2001. The referendum failed, 57 to 43 percent.

The Bobcats Arena replaced the Charlotte Coliseum, which was west of downtown near the airport. The coliseum opened in 1988, closed in 2005 and was demolished in 2007.

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What is the Bobcats Arena?