Address | 2727 East D Street |
---|---|
Location | Tacoma, Washington, U.S. [1] |
Coordinates | 47°14′12″N122°25′36″W / 47.23667°N 122.42667°W |
Public transit | Amtrak Sounder commuter rail Link light rail at Tacoma Dome Station |
Owner | City of Tacoma |
Operator | Venues & Events Department |
Capacity | 21,000 Detailed capacity
|
Construction | |
Broke ground | July 1, 1981 |
Opened | April 21, 1983 |
Renovated | 2018 |
Construction cost | $44 million ($147 million in 2023 dollars [2] ) |
Architect | McGranahan Messenger Associates [3] |
General contractor | Merit Co. [3] |
Tenants | |
Tacoma Stars (MISL) (1983–92) Tacoma Rockets (WHL) (1991–95) Seattle SuperSonics (NBA) (1994–95) Tacoma Sabercats (WCHL) (1997–2002) NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship (1989–90) Seattle Sounders (USL First Division) (1994) WIAA state football tournament (1995–2019) WIAA boys' state basketball tournament (2001–present, partial schedule) | |
Website | |
tacomadome |
Tacoma Dome is an indoor multi-purpose arena in Tacoma, Washington, United States. It is located south of Downtown Tacoma, adjacent to Interstate 5 and Tacoma Dome Station. It is currently used for basketball tournaments by the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA), concerts, and other community events. In its early years, it was primarily used as a venue for minor league ice hockey and indoor soccer, and later temporarily hosted professional teams from Seattle. [4]
Proposals to build a domed stadium in Tacoma were submitted to voters in various ballot measures in 1967, 1972, and 1976, but were all rejected. Following the completion of the Kingdome in Seattle, campaigners in Tacoma pushed for "a dome of our own"; a 1980 vote on a $28 million bond measure was approved and funded the construction of the Tacoma Dome. Construction began on July 1, 1981, at a site near Interstate 5; sites near Cheney Stadium and in downtown were also considered. [5] [6] The city planned to lure a National Hockey League team to the new stadium, but were unable to find a professional sports team to occupy the dome. It was designed by local architects McGranahan and Messenger, who won an international design competition, and cost $44 million to construct. [7] It opened on April 21, 1983, with 25,000 people attending the opening ceremonies. [8]
At 530 feet (160 m) in diameter and 152 feet (46 m) in height, the arena seats 20,722 for basketball games, with a maximum capacity of 21,000. It was the largest arena with a wooden dome in the world by volume at the time of its opening; [9] the Superior Dome in Marquette, Michigan, opened in 1991 with a larger-diameter geodesic dome at 536 feet (163 m), [5] but is 143 feet (44 m) high and seats a maximum of 16,000. [10] The dome's roof weighs 1.44 million pounds (650 t); some of the planks that form the roof were sourced from felled timber following the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens. [5] [6] Unlike most other arenas of its size, the arena contains little in the way of fixed seating, so as to maximize the flexibility of the seating arrangements and the shape of the playing field. It can also host American football, albeit with seating reduced to 10,000.
The dome's first event was a concert by American singer/actor Rick Nelson and the Stone Canyon Band as part of the Dome's opening festivities on April 24, 1983. [11] The stadium's turf was replaced in 1992 and 2006. [12] The stadium has not had a professional team as a tenant since 2002, attributed in part to the lack of amenities and luxury boxes, while a newer arena in Kent hosts the Seattle Thunderbirds of the WHL and the reincarnation of the Tacoma Stars. [13] Several new performing venues in the area, including KeyArena and the White River Amphitheatre, also lured away touring artists who would have used the Dome. [14]
A report to the city in 2000 identified the need for private suites, larger concourses, and modern locker and dressing rooms as key issues for the Dome. [15] A $42 million renovation plan, which included a new "grand entrance", larger concessions, a loading dock, and luxury suites, was proposed by a city-contracted consultant in 2004. [16] A bond issue to fund the renovation, which would require 60 percent of voters in favor, was approved in September 2005 but failed to meet the minimum turnout to validate the election. [17] A second attempt in the February 2006 special election failed after receiving only 55 percent approval. [18] [19]
During a Monster Jam event at the Tacoma Dome in January 2009, a piece of debris from a truck flew into the stands during a freestyle performance, killing a six-year-old spectator and injuring another spectator. [20] This is so far the only fatality to occur at a Monster Jam event.
On February 2, 2016, the Tacoma Dome started new security procedures in light of its sold-out AC/DC concert. The new enhancements included metal detector wands at each entrance, a bag size restriction, the prohibition of backpacks, and the search of all bags before entry. [21] In November 2016, the City of Tacoma approved a two-year, $21.3 million renovation project. [22] The renovations took place over the summer of 2018, with the cost rising to $30 million, [23] and were completed on October 8, 2018. [24] The renovations cost $32 million; among the new features were wider seats throughout the arena, showgoers having 6 inches of extra legroom and replacing the bench seating in the upper level. [25]
The first professional team to move into the Tacoma Dome were the Tacoma Stars of the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL); the stadium was the largest in the league, with seating for 20,284 in its indoor soccer configuration. [26] The seventh and final game of the 1987 MISL Championship Series was played in front of 21,728 spectators at the Tacoma Dome, setting a league attendance record. [27] The Dome also hosted the 1988 MISL All-Star Game on February 17, 1988, which drew 17,241 in attendance. [28]
The first professional soccer game to be played at the Tacoma Dome was a EuroPac Cup match between the Seattle Sounders and Internacional from Brazil. The Sounders lost 2–1 in front of 6,340; the stadium's capacity was set at 19,000 for soccer. [29] The team also bid for a lease to play their indoor season at the Dome, but lost to the Tacoma Stars. [30] [31]
The final match of the 1986 College Cup, the NCAA championship tournament for men's soccer, was hosted at the Tacoma Dome on December 13, 1986. The Duke Devils won 1–0 against the Akron Zips and clinched their first national title in front of 4,652 spectators. [32] The turf surface at the Dome was uneven and patched with electrical tape; it was later criticized as "no place to play a championship game" by Akron coach Steve Parker and "dangerous" by Duke midfielder Joey Valenti. [33]
The second-division Seattle Sounders played several soccer matches at the Dome during their inaugural season in the American Professional Soccer League in 1994 before moving to Memorial Stadium in Seattle. [34]
The championship game of the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament (known as the Women's Final Four) was hosted at the Tacoma Dome in 1988 and 1989. The latter was the first to be played in the same metropolitan area as the men's Final Four, which was hosted by the Kingdome in Seattle. [35] [36]
The Seattle SuperSonics played their first exhibition game at the Tacoma Dome on October 9, 1983, and lost 117–98 to the Portland Trail Blazers. [37] The stadium was configured with a maximum capacity of 22,000 for NBA games. [38] The team played four regular season games in Tacoma during the 1983–84 season and averaged 11,852 in attendance, greater than in the Kingdome. [39] The Sonics played four regular season games at the Dome during the 1984–85 season, but announced in April 1985 that they would not return for the following season to focus on their move to the Seattle Center Coliseum. [38]
The Sonics relocated to Tacoma for 41 home games during the 1994–95 season while the Seattle Center Coliseum underwent extensive renovations to become KeyArena (now Climate Pledge Arena). [5] The Dome was later used for Sonics games during other seasons and was offered by the city as a replacement for KeyArena during the team's relocation negotiations in 2006. [40] The Seattle Storm of the WNBA played an exhibition game at the Tacoma Dome in 2002 and a playoff game in 2013 that had been moved from KeyArena due to a scheduling conflict. [41]
The Dome was also the venue of ice hockey, gymnastics, and figure skating events during the 1990 Goodwill Games. [42] [43]
It was the site of the NCAA Division I-AA football championship game in 1985 and 1986.[ citation needed ] The venue also hosted Seattle Seahawks scrimmages and an annual rivalry game between the Pacific Lutheran University and the University of Puget Sound, both based in the Tacoma area. [44] A trophy for the rivalry game, unveiled in 2021, depicts the Tacoma Dome and the city skyline. [45]
The short-lived Tacoma Express, a semi-professional American football team playing in the Minor League Football System, played an exhibition game against the Moscow Bears of the Soviet Union American Football League on July 2, 1990. The Express won 61–0 against the Bears, whose roster included rugby players and track-and-field athletes, in front of 1,303 spectators; it was the first time that a Soviet Union football team had played in the United States. [46] [47] The team had planned to play their regular season games at the Tacoma Dome, but were unable to afford the venue and moved to the Stadium Bowl. [48] [49]
Several professional and junior ice hockey teams have also played at the Tacoma Dome. The Tacoma Rockets of the WHL played at the Dome from 1991 to 1995, but relocated to Kelowna, British Columbia, after finding the stadium unsuitable. [13] The Tacoma Sabercats of the WCHL debuted on November 1, 1997, at the Dome, which underwent minor renovations to better accommodate ice hockey. The main grandstand's first three rows were raised to improve sightlines, the Plexiglass barrier around the rink was replaced with seamless glass panels, and seating capacity was reduced to 9,500. [50] The Sabercats had strong attendance, but ceased operations in 2002. [13] [51]
The Tacoma Dome also hosted National Hockey League preseason exhibition games in 1983, 1984, 1988, 1992, [52] and 1996. [53] Plans to attract an NHL team to the venue were made in the 1980s and 1990s, but were unsuccessful. [54]
The Premier Lacrosse League played four games at the Tacoma Dome over a two-day weekend in August 2022 as part of their fourth traveling season. [55] The National Lacrosse League had previously considered an expansion team at the Tacoma Dome in 2006, but also solicited other bids from arenas in the Puget Sound region. [56]
The Tacoma Dome has hosted the Washington state championships for high school basketball, organized by the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA), since 1985; it was the first site nationwide to hold both boys' and girls' tournaments simultaneously. The WIAA also held the state championship games for high school football at the Tacoma Dome starting in 1995, having held the games at the Kingdome in Seattle beforehand; it elected to move the games out of the Tacoma Dome in 2019, citing rising costs and diminished sight lines inflicted by the 2018 renovations. [57]
The city government allocated $280,000 from the construction budget of the Tacoma Dome to furnish the arena with public art under its percent for art program. [58] Among the five finalists was Andy Warhol's adaption of his Flowers series, which would have painted a single orange flower on the roof. [59] The city's art commission endorsed a proposal by sculptor Stephen Antonakos to install abstract, neon-lit shapes on the dome's roof. It was rejected in 1982 by the city council in April 1982 due to concerns about the neon tubes's effects on the wooden roof and public outcry over the design. [60]
A modified version of Neons for the Tacoma Dome, consisting of four indoor panels that measure up to 72 feet (22 m) with abstract shapes in neon, was announced in early 1984. [61] The city council approved the purchase of Neons, but a public opposition group named "No Neon" petitioned the Pierce County Superior Court for an injunction to halt further spending on the commission. [62] The injunction was denied and the group instead gathered signatures to decide the issue in a citywide election. [63] Neons was installed over the Tacoma Dome's southeast and northeast exits and unveiled to the public on July 31, 1984. [64]
During the primary election on September 18, 74 percent of voters rejected an advisory question that would have endorsed the use of Antonakos's artwork in the Tacoma Dome. [65] The city council voted in December to approve the installation of Neons, but allow tenants to decide whether to light the sculpture. [66] The precent for arts ordinance was repealed by voters in the November 1985 election. [67] [68]
The Tacoma city government considered selling the naming rights for the Dome on several occasions to pay for renovations or other amenities that would attract a major league team. [54] In 2002, the city hired a consultant to explore naming rights deals for various public facilities, including the Tacoma Dome, that would fund repairs and renovations. [69] [70] A ten-year naming rights deal with Comcast or a local Toyota dealership was proposed the following year by the consultants after discussions with various companies. [71] Comcast emerged as the frontrunner and offered $3.5 million for the ten-year term in addition to free advertising on cable television that would be of equivalent value. [72] The company pulled out of the deal for the proposed "Comcast Dome" in December 2003, ahead of a city council vote and amid public backlash over the removal of "Tacoma" from its name. [73]
An offer to sell naming rights to city-owned Tacoma Power for $1.25 million annually was rejected in 2009 after a search for a city-inclusive name. [74] The city began soliciting new bids for a marketer in 2013 to search for naming rights sponsor, but the two submitted proposals were rejected for being too costly. [75]
Tacoma is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, 32 miles (51 km) southwest of Seattle, 36 miles (58 km) southwest of Bellevue, 31 miles (50 km) northeast of the state capital, Olympia, 58 miles (93 km) northwest of Mount Rainier National Park, and 80 miles (130 km) east of Olympic National Park. The city's population was 219,346 at the time of the 2020 census. Tacoma is the second-largest city in the Puget Sound area and the third-most populous in the state. Tacoma also serves as the center of business activity for the South Sound region, which has a population of about 1 million.
Interstate 705 (I-705), also known as the Tacoma Spur, is a short Interstate Highway in Tacoma, Washington, United States. It is a spur route of I-5 that connects the freeway to Downtown Tacoma, Tacoma's waterfront, North Tacoma, and the Tacoma Dome. I-705 was completed in 1988 and is one of the newest portions of the Interstate Highway System in Washington.
Husky Stadium is an outdoor football stadium in the northwest United States, located on the campus of the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington. It has been home to the Washington Huskies of the Big Ten Conference since 1920, hosting their football games. It also briefly hosted the Seattle Seahawks of the NFL in 2000 and 2001 while Qwest Field was being constructed.
The Kingdome was a multi-purpose stadium located in the Industrial District neighborhood of Seattle, Washington, United States. Owned and operated by King County, it was best known as the home stadium of the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL) and the Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball (MLB); it was also home to the Seattle SuperSonics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and additionally served as both the home outdoor and indoor venue for the Seattle Sounders of the North American Soccer League (NASL). The Kingdome measured 660 feet (200 m) wide from its inside walls.
Climate Pledge Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is located north of Downtown Seattle in the 74-acre (30 ha) entertainment complex known as the Seattle Center, the site of the 1962 World's Fair, for which it was originally developed. After opening in 1962, it was subsequently bought and converted by the city of Seattle for entertainment purposes. From 2018 to 2021, the arena underwent a $1.15 billion redevelopment; the renovation preserved the original exterior and roof, which was declared a Seattle Landmark in 2017 and was listed on the Washington Heritage Register as well as the National Register of Historic Places in 2018. The renovated venue has a capacity of 17,151 for ice hockey and 18,300 for basketball.
KZJO, branded as Fox 13+, is a television station in Seattle, Washington, United States, broadcasting the MyNetworkTV programming service. It is owned and operated by Fox Television Stations alongside Tacoma-licensed Fox outlet KCPQ. The two stations share studios on Westlake Avenue in Seattle's Westlake neighborhood; KZJO's transmitter is located near the Capitol Hill section of Seattle.
KCPQ is a television station licensed to Tacoma, Washington, United States, serving as the Fox network outlet for the Seattle area. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside MyNetworkTV station KZJO. The two stations share studios on Westlake Avenue in Seattle's Westlake neighborhood; KCPQ's main transmitter is located on Gold Mountain in Bremerton.
KONG is an independent television station licensed to Everett, Washington, United States, serving the Seattle area. It is owned by Tegna Inc. alongside NBC affiliate KING-TV. The two stations share studios at the Home Plate Center in the SoDo district of Seattle; KONG's transmitter is located in the city's Queen Anne neighborhood.
Cheney Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium located in Tacoma, Washington, United States. It is primarily used for baseball and is home to the Tacoma Rainiers of the minor league Pacific Coast League. The stadium also hosted professional soccer teams, including the Tacoma Defiance of the USL Championship until 2022 and OL Reign of the National Women's Soccer League until 2021. Cheney Stadium opened in 1960 and has a capacity of 6,500 seats. It is next to Henry Foss High School, and the stadium has an agreement with the school to use the school parking lot for parking.
The Yakima Valley SunDome is a 6,195-seat multi-purpose arena in Yakima, Washington, United States. Located on the Central Washington State Fairgrounds, it hosts sporting events, ice shows, horse shows, circuses, boxing and concerts, as well as trade shows and conventions. The stadium opened on January 16, 1990, and cost $14.8 million to construct. The building was designed by architecture firm Loofburrow & Associates.
The T Line, formerly known as Tacoma Link, is a light rail line in Tacoma, Washington, part of the Link light rail system operated by Sound Transit. It travels 4.0 miles (6.4 km) and serves 12 stations between Tacoma Dome Station, Downtown Tacoma, and Hilltop. The line carried 934,724 total passengers in 2019, with a weekday average of over 3,100 boardings. Tacoma Link runs for nine to 18 hours per day, using streetcars at frequencies of 12 to 20 minutes.
The Seattle SeaDogs were an indoor soccer team based in Seattle, Washington, United States. They played in the Continental Indoor Soccer League (CISL) from 1995 to 1997 with home games at Mercer Arena and KeyArena. The team were owned by the Ackerley Group, who also operated the Seattle SuperSonics, and were announced in 1993 amid a wave of new professional soccer teams in the Seattle metropolitan area.
The Seattle Sounders were an American professional soccer team based in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1974, the team belonged to the North American Soccer League where it played both indoor and outdoor soccer. The team folded after the 1983 NASL outdoor season but the name was revived in 1994 for a lower-division team and Seattle Sounders FC of the top-flight Major League Soccer, founded in 2007.
The Seattle Sounders were an American professional soccer team that was founded in 1994 and played in several second-division leagues, beginning with the American Professional Soccer League. They played in the A-League, later renamed the USL First Division, from 1997 to 2008. The team was named for the Seattle Sounders of the North American Soccer League (NASL), which folded in 1983. The Sounders folded after the 2008 season as part of a transition to a new Major League Soccer (MLS) team named Seattle Sounders FC that debuted in 2009.
The Seattle SuperSonics were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The SuperSonics competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Division (1967–1970), and later as a member of the Western Conference's Pacific (1970–2004) and Northwest (2004–2008) divisions. After the 2007–08 season ended, the team relocated to Oklahoma City, where they now play as the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Tacoma Dome Station is a train station and transit hub in Tacoma, Washington, United States. It is served by Amtrak trains, the S Line of Sounder commuter rail, the T Line of Link light rail, and buses on local and intercity routes. Located near the Tacoma Dome south of Downtown Tacoma, the station consists of two train platforms used by Sounder and Amtrak trains, a platform for the T Line, a bus terminal, and two parking garages. The Sounder station is integrated into Freighthouse Square, a former Milwaukee Road depot that was converted into a shopping mall, and is on the east side of the Amtrak station.
The Stadium Bowl is a 15,000-seat stadium in the Stadium District of Tacoma, Washington, United States. It is adjacent to Stadium High School and has views of Commencement Bay and Puget Sound from its open north end. The stadium was designed by Frederick Heath and opened in 1910, primarily for use by the then-renamed Stadium High School and later Silas High School.
The Union Passenger Station in Tacoma, Washington, United States, opened in 1911. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. It now serves as a courthouse of the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington. The distinctive architecture, dominated by a copper dome, is a landmark for the area.
Tacoma Defiance, formerly Seattle Sounders FC 2, is an American professional soccer team based in Puget Sound region in Tukwila, Washington, U.S. that competes in the MLS Next Pro, a league in the third tier of the United States soccer league system, as the reserve team of Seattle Sounders FC. Formerly, 20 percent of the club was fan-owned through the non-profit Sounders Community Trust.
Renovations will begin in summer of 2017. New seating will be installed during summer of 2018, with all renovations completed by fall of 2018.