 PPL Center's logo as of 2018 | |
 PPL Center in 2018 | |
  PPL Center Location within the United States Show map of the United States | |
| Address | 701Hamilton Street |
|---|---|
| Location | Allentown, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Coordinates | 40°36′9″N75°28′22″W / 40.60250°N 75.47278°W /40.60250; -75.47278 |
| Public transit |  LANta bus: EBS Green Line, EBS Blue Line, 102, 103, 104, 107, 209, 210, 211, 213, 218, 220, 322, 323, 324 at Allentown Transportation Center |
| Owner | City of Allentown |
| Operator | Global Spectrum[1] |
| Capacity | 8,420 (9,046 with standing room) (Hockey)[2] 10,500 (Concerts)[3] 8,500 (Indoor football) |
| Surface | Multi-surface |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | January 3, 2012 (site demolition)[4] November 29, 2012 (official)[5] |
| Opened | September 10, 2014[10] |
| Construction cost | $191.4 million ($282 million total project)[6] |
| Architect | Sink Combs Dethlefs Elkus Manfredi Architects |
| Project manager | Hammes Company Sports Development, Inc. |
| Structural engineer | Martin/Martin, Inc.[7] |
| Services engineer | M–E Engineers, Inc.[8] |
| General contractor | Alvin H. Butz Jr.[9] |
| Tenants | |
| Lehigh Valley Phantoms (AHL) (2014–present) Lehigh Valley Steelhawks (PIFL/AIF/NAL) (2015–2018) Philadelphia Soul (AFL) (2016) (late season and playoffs) | |
| Website | |
| pplcenter | |
ThePPL Center is an 8,500-seat capacity indoor sports arena inAllentown, Pennsylvania. It opened on September 10, 2014. It is the home arena for theLehigh Valley Phantoms of theAmerican Hockey League, the primary development hockey team for thePhiladelphia Flyers. The arena also hosts major concerts, sports, and entertainment events throughout the year.
The arena was part of a larger redevelopment project of the central business district of Allentown. The project encompasses a five-acre square block area in which several new structures are planned to be erected:[11] Part of the arena site was previously developed in the 1980s as an office building called Corporate Plaza. On February 23, 1994, it collapsed into a sinkhole, due to limestone in the ground and the decision to not place the building on a concrete pad, but rather on spread footings; the plaza was imploded on March 19 of that year.[12] Within the arena on the ground floor,WFMZ-TV maintains a studio that houses its news operation.
Its naming rights are owned by thePPL Corporation, an Allentown-based company that paid an undisclosed sum over ten years for the naming rights.[11]
Some criticism about the PPL Center centered around the cost of the arena relative to the cost of other dedicatedAmerican Hockey League arenas in the country. Nathan Benefield, the director of Public Analysis for TheCommonwealth Foundation for Public Policy Alternatives, a Pennsylvania free-market think tank that opposes public funding of stadiums, believes that the PPL Center benefited from funding a plan with no cap on public money beyond the annual revenue generated by the zone.[13] As of October 2012, $224.3 million in bonds have been sold.[11][14][15]
Rebuilding an arena on the site of theSpectrum inPhiladelphia was rejected in favor of the more profitableStateside Live! project and a new 180-room Renaissance byMarriott hotel. The competition to build a new arena for the Phantoms in 2008 was primarily between Allentown andCamden, New Jersey.[16] While Camden was closer, Allentown had a more elaborate proposal which helped secure Allentown's bid for the team.[citation needed]
Plans to build the PPL Center at the corner of 7th andHamilton streets inCenter City Allentown were announced in late 2009. For much of 2009 and 2010, the focus of the project was on securing funding. The project took a major leap forward in 2011 when several properties were purchased by the city of Allentown to help clear the way for the project to begin. By the end of January 2012, all of the properties had been purchased with final demolition of all buildings occurring in early February 2012.
The arena plays host to theLehigh Valley Phantoms of theAmerican Hockey League, the primary development hockey team of thePhiladelphia Flyers. It had been home to theLehigh Valley Steelhawks, anindoor football team, who played four seasons in the arena from 2015 to 2018. It also served as the site for the last remaining home games and two home playoff games for theArena Football League'sPhiladelphia Soul while theWells Fargo Center inPhiladelphia was hosting the2016 Democratic National Convention. The arena has hosted theNHL preseason game, called "Flyers in the Valley", annually since 2016.
Since 2016, the arena also hosts the Allentown Indoor Race, amidget car racing event of the Indoor Auto Racing Championship Series.
Since its opening in 2014, PPL Center has hosted a number of notable concerts, including:[17]
On May 31, 2011, a comprehensive parking analysis conducted by Traffic Planning and Design, Inc. (TPD) was submitted to Allentown Economic Development Corporation. The analysis stated the total number of parking spaces within the study area, between the public and private parking garages and surface lots, was of approximately 7,376 parking spaces. As a result of this parking analysis, the existing spaces and proposed construction of an additional 500 parking spaces to be built with this development, will adequately accommodate the highest peak period parking demands of the proposed Allentown arena and mixed-used development.[18] In comparison,Coca-Cola Park on Allentown's east side has 2,500 parking spots available.[19]
Also on May 31, 2011, a comprehensive traffic analysis conducted by Traffic Planning and Design, Inc. (TPD) was submitted to Allentown Economic Development Corporation. The report stated that the existing roadway infrastructure can accommodate the new traffic generated by the proposed development. Conditions will be further improved with the recommended improvements.[20]
Authority control databases: Geographic |
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