The Arena - Greater Binghamton's Premier Events Destination | |
 | |
  Visions Veterans Memorial Arena Location within New York State Show map of New York Visions Veterans Memorial Arena Location within the United States Show map of the United States | |
| Former names | Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena (1973–2014) Floyd L. Maines Veterans Memorial Arena (2014–2021) |
|---|---|
| Location | One Stuart Street Binghamton, New York 13901 |
| Coordinates | 42°5′44″N75°54′47″W / 42.09556°N 75.91306°W /42.09556; -75.91306 |
| Owner | Broome County |
| Operator | Broome County |
| Capacity | 7,200 (concerts)[1] 4,710 (ice hockey)[2] |
| Surface | Multi-surface |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | June 1971 |
| Opened | August 29, 1973 |
| Construction cost | $7.5 million ($53.1 million in 2024 dollars[3]) |
| Architect | Elbasani, Logan & Severin[4] |
| Structural engineer | T. Y. Lin & Associates[4] |
| General contractor | E. L. Nezelek[4] |
| Tenants | |
| Broome Dusters (NAHL) (1973–1977) Binghamton Dusters/Whalers/Rangers (AHL) (1977–1997) B.C. Icemen (UHL) (1997–2002) Binghamton Senators (AHL) (2002–2017) Binghamton Devils (AHL) (2017–2020) Binghamton Black Bears (FPHL) (2021–present) | |
Visions Veterans Memorial Arena (formerly known as theBroome County Veterans Memorial Arena andFloyd L. Maines Veterans Memorial Arena) is a 7,200-seat multi-purposearena inBinghamton, New York. The arena was completed in 1973, providing an entertainment venue for residents of theGreater Binghamton area. The arena has eight luxury suites that each hold 25 fans (200 total). A longtime home to minor league hockey, the arena is home to theBinghamton Black Bears of theFederal Prospects Hockey League.
In the 1960s, the city of Binghamton started planning a number of urban renewal projects to revitalize the urban core, collectively known as Project 1. Based on the recommendations of a citizen committee, city and county leaders included a proposal as part of Project 1 to construct a downtown cultural complex.[5][6] The proposed complex would consist of two buildings: a multipurpose veterans memorial auditorium and a performing arts center.
A nationwide design competition for the complex (at the time referred to as theBroome County Cultural Center)[7][8][9] was held and Elbasani, Logan & Severin (ELS) were selected as the winners in November 1967.[10] ELS was formed specifically to enter the competition, and it has since become a nationally recognized architectural firm.[11] The winning design placed the arena between State Street and Washington Street, and the performing arts center along the river on Washington Street, with an elevated walkway over Washington Street that would connect the two buildings. The arena plans made use of an innovativespace frame based design to avoid view-obstructing columns.[7]
The first (and ultimately only) phase of construction, consisting of the arena and a short part of the elevated walkway, lasted from 1971 to 1973, with the cost coming to $7.5 million at the time (equivalent to $53.1 million in 2024).[7] The arena was built with 17,000 square feet of space on the arena floor, with another 12,000 square feet on the concourse. The first act, theRingling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, took place in an unfinished arena in May 1973.Chicago played the arena's first concert (withBruce Springsteen as opener) on June 13, 1973. The ribbon cutting and first event on ice was theIce Capades.
The complex's proposed second phase, consisting of the remaining elevated walkway and the riverside performing arts center, was never built due to budgetary issues; the portion of the walkway built during the first phase remains as an extension of the arena. In place of the new performing arts center, the county refurbished and expanded the Capri Theatre, which became theBroome County Forum.
It was announced on August 14, 2020, that the arena would be renamed the Visions Veterans Memorial Arena effective January 1, 2021. The Visions Federal Credit Union took over naming rights from the Maines Family who chose not to renew their contract.[12][13]
TheBroome Dusters of theNorth American Hockey League were the building's first full-time tenant. After a tepid first year of support, the Dusters draw many sellouts, and the community's passion for the team led theHockey News to declare Binghamton asHockey Town USA.[14] The Broome Dusters became theBinghamton Dusters in 1977 and moved into theAmerican Hockey League (AHL). The franchise went through a number of name changes, becoming theWhalers and then theRangers before it relocated toHartford, Connecticut, in 1997.
The Rangers were replaced by theBC Icemen, of theUnited Hockey League, for five seasons. The AHL returned in 2002 with theBinghamton Senators, who were affiliated with theOttawa Senators of theNational Hockey League. The arena and the Senators hosted the 2008 AHL All-Star Classic with the skills contest and game broadcast on consecutive nights on live TV across the US and Canada.
In 2017, the Senators were replaced with theNew Jersey Devils' affiliate, theBinghamton Devils. In 2020, the B-Devils temporarily relocated to New Jersey during theCOVID-19 pandemic causing a disagreement with the arena's operators.[15] The Devils' AHL franchise was then relocated as theUtica Comets before the2021–22 season.[16] The arena then agreed to a lease with theFederal Prospects Hockey League (FPHL) to add an expansion team called theBinghamton Black Bears for the 2021–22 season.[17]
TheNew Jersey Nets of theNational Basketball Association, and theHartford Whalers,Washington Capitals, andOttawa Senators of theNational Hockey League have all hosted exhibition games at the arena.
Each December, the arena plays host to the Stop-DWI Holiday Classic, a high school basketball tournament. From 1992 to 2014, the Classic included a national bracket, and was considered to be one of the premiere high school basketball tournaments in the United States. In 2016, the arena hosted theNew York State Public High School Athletic Association boys' basketball championship.
The arena has hosted notable names in entertainment, includingAC/DC,Bob Dylan,Dropkick Murphys,Rod Stewart,B.B. King,Bon Jovi,The Eagles,Kenny Rogers,Aerosmith,Fleetwood Mac,Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers,Rush,Metallica,Van Halen,Def Leppard,Elton John,Keith Sweat,Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band,Cher,Dolly Parton,Ozzy Osbourne,Grateful Dead,Phish,Metallica,Green Day,Twisted Sister,Stone Temple Pilots,Darius Rucker,Goo Goo Dolls,Carrie Underwood, andJeff Dunham. Trade shows, theBinghamton Philharmonic, theHarlem Globetrotters, and the Circus all make yearly visits.
Elvis Presley performed back-to-back sold out concerts at the arena, May 26 and 27, just prior to his death in the summer of 1977.
TheGrateful Dead performed at the Arena on November 6, 1977, May 9, 1979, and April 12, 1983.[18] The 1977 concert was released in 2018 asDave's Picks Volume 25.[19]
On November 29, 1984,Kiss performed at the Arena, as part of theirAnimalize World Tour. It was their last show with lead guitaristMark St. John, in which he played the entire show. St. John had only played three shows (two in full) with the group, before being permanently replaced byBruce Kulick.[20]
Phish's December 14, 1995, performance at the arena was released asLive Phish Volume 1 in 2001.
On May 15, 1995 (also the May 22, 1995, episode was taped that same night); April 21, 1997; July 20, 1998; and June 13, 2005,World Wrestling Entertainment broughtRAW to the arena. The 1995 episodes were attended byWWE Hall of Fame memberBeth Phoenix, who is a native of nearbyElmira, NY and was still attending grade school atNotre Dame High School. This was the first time Phoenix would attend a wrestling event in person and she earned four tickets to the event by winning a coloring contest in a local newspaper. Phoenix would go on to become a multiple timeWWE Women's Champion andWWE Divas Champion before becoming a member of the WWE Hall of Fame (Class of 2017) and the wife of fellow WWE superstarEdge. The 1997 episode was the RAW afterIn Your House 14: Revenge of the 'Taker. The 1998 episode was the RAW beforeFully Loaded: In Your House. The 2005 episode was the RAW after the inauguralECW One Night Stand pay-per-view.
On November 13, 1999,Extreme Championship Wrestling taped an episode ofECW on TNN at the Arena. It aired on November 19, 1999.
On February 1, 2000,World Championship Wrestling taped an episode ofWCW Thunder that was aired the following evening.
On March 3, 2012, the Arena was set to host the New York State Section IV Class D Basketball Championship Games. The girls' championship game featured the South Kortright Rams and the Worcester Wolverines, two state ranked teams. However, before the game a transformer outside of the arena malfunctioned, causing the entire arena to lose power. Fans were stranded both inside the concourse, and outside the arena while crews worked to fix the issue. After a two hour delay, power was restored, and the games were played. South Kortright would go onto win the Section IV title by a score of 44-38.[21]
The Arena is home to the Binghamton Hockey Hall of Fame, with a display of plaques on the main concourse. Current inductees are:
1998:Ken Holland,Randy MacGregor, Jim Matthews
1999: Rod Bloomfield, Jacques Caron,Paul Stewart
2000: Paul Crowley, Paul Fenton,Larry Pleau
2001: Craig Duncanson, Pierre Laganiere,Brad Shaw
2002: Chris Cichocki, Peter Sidorkiewicz, Ross Yates
2003: Roger Neel,Peter Fiorentino
2004:Peter Laviolette, Jon Smith, Bob Sullivan
2005: Don Biggs, Dallas Gaume, Brad Jones
2006:Ken Gernander, Dave Staffen
2007: Gary Jaquith, Brian McReynolds
2008:AHL All Star Game - No Inductions
2009:Mike Dunham, Glenn Merkosky
2010: Daniel Lacroix, Tom Mitchell
2011: Chris Grenville,Corey Hirsch,John Paddock
2012: Mike Busniuk,Chris Ferraro,Peter Ferraro
2013: Bob Carr, Al Hill
2014:Denis Hamel
2015:Rob Zamuner, Bob Moppert, Scott Allegrino
2016: Richard Grenier, Jean-Yves Roy, Justin Plamondon
2017:Ray Emery, Steve Stirling, Patrick Snyder
2018:Brian McGrattan, Larry Kish
2019:Chris Kelly,Ryan Keller, Grady Whittenburg
2020:No Inductions
2021:No Inductions
2022:No Inductions
2023:Josh Hennessy, Patrice Robitaille, Charlie Jaworski
2024:Kurt Kleinendorst, Stephen "Shimes" Shimer
Authority control databases: Geographic |
|---|