Baxter Arena

{{Infobox venue

| stadium_name = Baxter Arena

| image = File:Baxter Arena opening night vs Air Force.jpg

| image_size = 250px

| caption = Opening night in October 2015

| address = 2425 South 67th Street

| location = Omaha, Nebraska, U.S.

| coordinates = {{coord|41.236|-96.013|type:landmark_scale:2000|display=it}}

| image_map = {{maplink|frame=yes|plain=yes|frame-align=center|frame-width=250|zoom=10|type=point}}

| pushpin_map = USA#Nebraska

| pushpin_map_caption = Location in the United States##Location in Nebraska

| pushpin_mapsize = 240

| pushpin_label = Omaha

| pushpin_relief = yes

| broke_ground = 2014

| opened = {{start date and age|2015|10|23|br=y}}{{cite news |title=October 2015 Opening of UNO Arena to Be a 'Moment of Pride'|first=Henry J.|last=Cordes|url=http://www.omaha.com/news/metro/october-opening-of-uno-arena-to-be-a-moment-of/article_e7e83eac-b270-5cac-a9ba-a0c7e1a62b5d.html|newspaper=Omaha World-Herald|date=February 3, 2015|access-date=March 20, 2015}}

| owner = University of Nebraska Omaha

| operator = University of Nebraska Omaha

| construction_cost = $88.1 million

| architect = HDR, Inc. (lead)
Lempka + Edson (secondary)

| general_contractor = Kiewit Building Group

| tenants = Omaha Mavericks (NCAA Division I)
{{spaces|6}}men: ice hockey and basketball
women: basketball and volleyball
Omaha Kings FC (MLIS) (2022–present)
Omaha Queens FC (MASLW) (2022–present)

| seating_capacity = 7,898

}}

Baxter Arena (original working name UNO Community Arena) is a sports arena in the central United States in Omaha, Nebraska. Owned and operated by the University of Nebraska Omaha, it serves as the home of several of the university's intercollegiate athletic teams, known as the Omaha Mavericks. The arena opened to the public on October 23, 2015, when the hockey team defeated Air Force 4–2.{{cite press release|url=http://www.omavs.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=31400&ATCLID=210447114 |title=Mavericks, Baxter Share Spotlight in 4-2 Win |publisher=Omaha Athletics |date=October 23, 2015 |access-date=October 29, 2015}}{{cite news|last1=Taylor|first1=Jackson|title=UNO triumphs over Air Force in first ever game at Baxter Arena|url=http://unothegateway.com/uno-triumphs-over-air-force-in-first-ever-game-at-baxter-arena/|access-date=17 February 2016|work=The Gateway|agency=University of Nebraska Omaha|issue=October 27, 2015}}

Background

In 2012, Omaha mayor Jim Suttle announced that the Omaha Civic Auditorium, which originally opened in 1954, would close in 2014 due to excessive maintenance costs.{{cite web|title=UNO Community Arena|url=http://www.unomaha.edu/athletics/arena.php|publisher=University of Nebraska Omaha|access-date=February 17, 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150219160901/http://www.unomaha.edu/athletics/arena.php|archive-date=February 19, 2015}} The closing of the Auditorium would leave Omaha without a mid-sized indoor venue, and would also have a major impact on the Mavericks ice hockey team. While the team played its home games at the city's main indoor venue, then known as CenturyLink Center Omaha, it regularly practiced at the Auditorium.{{cite web |title=Nebraska Regents Approves Plan for new UNO Arena|url=http://www.collegehockeynews.com/news/2013/03/15_nebraska_regents_approves.php|work=College Hockey News|date=March 15, 2013|access-date=February 17, 2015}} It was already one of the few NCAA Division I hockey teams without a dedicated practice facility. Additionally, the 14,000-seat CenturyLink Center was increasingly being seen as too large for the hockey program's needs.

The university then began planning for a new arena, selecting a site at the Aksarben Village development, which has become integrated with the UNO campus in recent years.{{cite news |title=UNO's Rising Arena, Finances Both Solid|first=Christopher|last=Burbach|url=http://www.omaha.com/news/metro/uno-s-rising-arena-finances-both-solid/article_c1e9bd99-ae9c-51cc-872e-281c53255a87.html|newspaper=Omaha World-Herald|date=October 6, 2014|access-date=February 17, 2015}} The arena received approval from the University of Nebraska Board of Regents on March 15, 2013. It was originally budgeted at $75 million, but the final cost came in at $81.6 million. Nearly half of the cost was expected to be covered by donations, and UNO announced in June 2015 that it had sold the naming rights to Baxter Auto, a group of auto dealerships in Omaha and the surrounding region, for $400,000 per year over 10 years.{{cite web|title=UNO's new athletic arena gets a name|url=http://www.omaha.com/uno/hockey/uno-s-new-athletic-arena-gets-a-name/article_efb77630-09fd-11e5-85b3-c7dfe346c769.html|publisher=Omaha World Herald|access-date=3 June 2015}}

File:Baxter Arena opening night.jpg

The arena was expected to more than cover its required debt service. UNO's financial projections assumed that the arena would host only four non-university events per year. However, the venue is available to lease for events that would have been hosted by the Auditorium before its closure. At least three area school districts, including Omaha Public Schools, moved their high school graduations to the arena by 2016.

The new arena has been the home court for the Omaha men's and women's basketball teams and a secondary home for the women's volleyball team from its opening. The volleyball team played its first game in the arena near the end of the 2015 season on November 1, and also played its final home game of the season there on November 10.{{cite press release|url=http://www.omavs.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=795091&SPID=135128&DB_LANG=C&ATCLID=210210669&DB_OEM_ID=31400 |title=Mavs Unveil 2015 Volleyball Schedule, Ticket Plans |publisher=Omaha Athletics |date=July 28, 2015 |access-date=July 29, 2015}} Ever since, both basketball teams have played all home games at the arena.{{cite press release|url=http://www.omavs.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=795091&SPID=135128&DB_LANG=C&ATCLID=210210669&DB_OEM_ID=31400 |title=Omaha Releases 2015-16 Men's Basketball Schedule |publisher=Omaha Athletics |date=July 15, 2015 |access-date=July 29, 2015}}{{cite press release|url=http://www.omavs.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=31400&ATCLID=210211787 |title=Omaha Women's Basketball Schedule Released for 2015-16 |publisher=Omaha Athletics |date=July 14, 2015 |access-date=July 29, 2015}} President Barack Obama spoke at the arena in 2016 and became the first incumbent president to visit the university.{{cite press release|url=https://www.unomaha.edu/potus/president-to-speak-at-uno.php |title=President Obama Speaks at Baxter Arena |publisher=University of Nebraska Omaha |date=January 16, 2018 |access-date=November 1, 2018}}

Features

The arena currently has a fixed-seat capacity of 7,898, with 17 luxury suites, 750 club seats, and a 750-seat student section. It also has two separate ice sheets—one in the main arena for games, and a second that serves as a dedicated practice facility for the Mavericks.

Unlike most venues of this type, the practice rink is the most visible to those entering through the main gate—according to Mavericks athletic director Trev Alberts, "This will probably be the first and only arena you’ll see where the focal point of the entire arena is the community ice." UNO has committed to provide at least a third of the venue's ice time for community purposes.

The elevation at street level is approximately {{convert|1030|ft|round=5}} above sea level.

Events

The arena held two major curling events in 2017. In August was the U.S. Grand Prix of Curling, a made-for-television competition that is broadcast as Curling Night in America. Three months later in November, the United States Curling Association held the 2017 United States Olympic Curling Trials at the arena.{{Cite news|date=August 23, 2017|title=Curling Night in America Coming to Baxter Arena|work=WOWT 6 News|url=https://www.wowt.com/content/sports/Curling-Night-in-America-Coming-to-Baxter-Arena-441588313.html|access-date=April 8, 2021}}

Baxter Arena has also been used for All Elite Wrestling, as WWE has exclusive use of CHI Health Center Omaha.