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28-658: Alaska Airlines Arena at Hec Edmundson Pavilion (formerly and still commonly referred to as Hec Edmundson Pavilion or simply Hec Ed ) is an indoor arena in the northwest United States , on the campus of the University of Washington in Seattle , Washington . It serves as home to several of the university's sports teams, known as the Washington Huskies of the Pac-12 Conference until

56-466: A Hall of Fame section were also part of the project. The running track was removed, transferred to the new Dempsey indoor practice facility, which opened the following autumn. During the renovation, the Husky basketball teams were displaced for one season (1999–2000), and played their home games 5 miles (8.0 km) away at Seattle Center ; the men at KeyArena and the women at Mercer Arena . In 2011,

84-622: A home for the Seattle Kraken . The Storm split the 2019 WNBA season, playing several games at Angel of the Winds Arena . The team originally planned to play the first ten games of its 2020 home schedule at Hec Ed, between May 15 and July 5, 2020, moving to Angel of the Winds Arena for the second half of the season, but had ended up playing a shortened 22-game season in Bradenton, Florida (as with all WNBA teams that year) because of

112-429: A local distribution company for educational, technology, and casework solutions. Another major improvement was the removal of the 20 view-obscuring support pillars in the upper level, replaced by two massive non-obscuring "super trusses," above and behind the sidelines. Both are 243 feet (74 m) in length and painted yellow-gold, as are the supporting tri-leg columns in the arena's four corners, proudly exhibited in

140-529: A location, often with the specific intent of comparing an idea to a sporting event. Such examples of these would be terms such as "the arena of war", "the arena of love" or "the political arena". Seattle Center In 1886, Seattle founder David Denny donated the tract of land that would eventually host the Seattle Center, stipulating that it be of "public use forever". Plans for the land took shape in 1928, when mayor Bertha Knight Landes dedicated

168-644: A long-term campus plan; the Disney proposal included replacement of the International Fountain with a pond and Memorial Stadium with a parking garage topped by an artificial meadow. The proposals were rejected by the city government after public outcry at hearings. Several buildings and pieces of artwork at the Seattle Center have Japanese influences. These include the Pacific Science Center, designed by architect Minoru Yamasaki ,

196-474: A new arena for the basketball programs. Nothing has come of these plans since this announcement. Following the volleyball team's final four season of 2013 , a Taraflex surface was installed for volleyball in the summer of 2014. Used for major international competitions, such as the Olympics and world championships , it is composed of vinyl and foam with a thickness of 7 mm (0.28 in). Washington

224-476: Is also the sport of indoor American football (one variant of which is explicitly known as arena football), a variant of the outdoor game that is designed for the usual smaller playing surface of most arenas; variants of other traditionally outdoor sports, including box lacrosse as well as futsal and indoor soccer , also exist. The term "arena" is also used loosely to refer to any event or type of event which either literally or metaphorically takes place in such

252-429: Is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators, and may be covered by a roof. The key feature of an arena is that the event space is the lowest point, allowing maximum visibility. Arenas are usually designed to accommodate a multitude of spectators. The word derives from Latin harena , a particularly fine-grained sand that covered the floor of ancient arenas such as

280-547: Is located immediately north of Husky Stadium , bounded on the west by Montlake Boulevard. Originally the University of Washington Pavilion, the building was constructed in nine months in 1927 for $ 600,000 and opened on December 27. After 20 years, it was renamed the Hec Edmundson Pavilion on January 16, 1948, honoring the university's longtime track and basketball coach. An Olympian in 1912 in

308-405: The 400 and 800 meters , Edmundson (1886–1964) had stepped down the previous spring after 27 seasons as head basketball coach and continued as head track coach through the 1954 season. The building was designed as a multi-purpose field house, handling six or seven sports (men's), including use as an indoor football field and track. Seating and flooring were intentionally mobile, and the floor

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336-702: The COVID-19 pandemic . The WNBA's original schedule included a month-long break in July and August 2020 to allow players to participate in the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo; however, they were postponed until the next year (2021) owing to the pandemic. The WNBA had started their 2020 season in July. Since the arena lacks air conditioning, and the WNBA requires that all games be played in air-conditioned venues, portable air conditioning units have been used during Storm games. At

364-628: The Colosseum in Rome , Italy, to absorb blood. The term arena is sometimes used as a synonym for a very large venue such as Pasadena's Rose Bowl , but such a facility is typically called a stadium . The use of one term over the other has mostly to do with the type of event. Football (be it association , rugby , gridiron , Australian rules , or Gaelic ) is typically played in a stadium, while basketball , volleyball , handball , and ice hockey are typically played in an arena, although many of

392-522: The 2023-24 season. Starting with the 2024-25 season, Washington becomes a member of the Big Ten Conference . Originally opened in late 1927 as the University of Washington Pavilion , the brick venue is home to the UW men's and women's basketball programs, as well as the women's volleyball and gymnastics teams. The current seating capacity of Hec Ed is 10,000 for basketball. The pavilion

420-583: The Century 21 Center from the corporation after it had incurred $ 300,000 in debts. The corporation was dissolved in 1965 and promotion of the Seattle Center was transferred to Greater Seattle, Inc., the region's tourism organization. The Seattle Center campus underwent a decline in attendance and importance after the World's Fair, which led to proposal to redevelop it for other uses. The Seattle city government contracted Walt Disney Imagineering in 1987 to design

448-413: The arena expired after ten years in 2010 and was without an immediate successor. After several unsponsored months, the university announced its approval of Seattle-based Alaska Airlines as the new sponsor of Hec Ed on January 20, 2011. Arena An arena is a large enclosed platform, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre , musical performances , and/or sporting events . It

476-500: The concourses. Additionally, the six large arched windows at the west end of the building were uncovered. Painted over for years, they were refitted with filtered glass to allow them to remain uncovered during games. The acoustical ceiling, installed in 1967 for use as a concert and music hall, was removed to expose the steel rafters. The rafters and the black ceiling above them were painted in an off-white buff tone. New locker rooms, athletic offices, meeting rooms, training rooms, and

504-741: The first round of the 1987 playoffs against the Dallas Mavericks and won both, including the series clincher. The Sonics had to play these playoff series at Hec Edmundson because both the Seattle Center Coliseum and the Kingdome were booked for other events. The arena has hosted the city's WNBA team, the Seattle Storm , during the 2019 season. The Storm, which normally play at Seattle Center Arena , were temporarily displaced during that venue's renovation into

532-588: The larger arenas hold more spectators than do the stadiums of smaller colleges or high schools. There are exceptions. The home of the Duke University men's and women's basketball teams would qualify as an arena, but the facility is called Cameron Indoor Stadium . Domed stadiums, which, like arenas, are enclosed but have the larger playing surfaces and seating capacities found in stadiums, are generally not referred to as arenas in North America. There

560-645: The newly-constructed arena and auditorium on the site as the Civic Center complex. In 1958, the Civic Auditorium was chosen as the future location of the World's Fair, and demolition work began following a countdown ceremony initiated by President Dwight D. Eisenhower . In 1961, Japanese architects Hideki Shimizu and Kazuyuki Matsushita were chosen to design the International Fountain , and a contract with Alweg Rapid Transit Systems

588-529: The reopening in November 2000 , the title "Bank of America Arena" was added, following a payment of $ 9.1 million by Bank of America for the 10-year naming rights. (When the naming rights were originally awarded in June 1998, it was to be called " Seafirst Arena." Although Seafirst was acquired in 1983 by B of A, the name continued to be used until 1999, when Bank of America retired the brand.) The sponsorship of

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616-621: The university announced plans for a new basketball training facility. The project includes a pre-design study for a $ 50 million basketball training facility for the men's and Women's basketball programs to be located in the vicinity of the Alaska Airlines Arena. The scope of work may include relocation and replacement of existing ICA facilities related to the new project. The pre-design study will include programming, alternatives, design concepts, cost estimates, and other related reports. The study may include an option to replace or build

644-473: The usage of the building's overall space. The east end of the building was sectioned off into a practice gymnasium and the main basketball court was moved 50 feet (15 m) west, enclosed by a tighter bowl of seats. The seating capacity was increased from 7,900 to 10,000 while using significantly less of the building. Half of the seats (5,000) are the chair type, with the other half bleachers, of which 60% have backs. The seats were supplied by Saxton Bradley, Inc.,

672-412: Was originally dirt; the football team practiced in the venue during bad weather. The basketball floor was laid over a bed of 2x4s , resulting in a variety of bounce characteristics. Hec Ed originally had glass skylights in its ceiling; during the state high school basketball tournament in 1938, one of these fell during a windstorm and injured two adults, resulting in their permanent removal. The pavilion

700-673: Was returned to the City of Seattle, which has since maintained it as a hub for the city's performing arts and sporting events. Some of the facilities were leased to the Century 21 Center, a nonprofit corporation formed in 1962 to promote the Seattle Center complex. The Seattle Center Armory remained under the ownership of the Washington State Military Department but was leased to the city government for use as an events and museum space. In December 1964, City of Seattle announced its intent to take over management of

728-461: Was signed for the construction of the monorail line . On April 21, 1962, President John F. Kennedy officially opened the World's Fair; the six-month event was attended by, among others, astronaut John Glenn , politician Robert F. Kennedy , and singer Elvis Presley , who arrived in September 1962 to shoot the film It Happened at the World's Fair . On June 1, 1963, ownership of the complex

756-658: Was the ninth Division I school to install Taraflex and the first in the Pac-12 Conference. The arena was the site of a few Seattle SuperSonics games. The NBA team played six regular season games there during the 1970-71 season. In 1980 , the Sonics played two games during the Western Conference finals against the Los Angeles Lakers and lost both. They played their two home games of

784-520: Was used as a venue for the 1990 Goodwill Games and the flooring was renovated for the event. After more than 71 years, the multi-purpose arena underwent a major renovation in March 1999 , following the final home games of the basketball season. The project took 19 months to complete and cost $ 40 million. The expansive interior of the building was reconfigured by LMN Architects to make the arena environment more intimate for fans and players, and to improve

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