Miami Arena - History

History

Completed in 1988 at a cost of $52.5 million, its opening took business away from the Hollywood Sportatorium and eventually led to its demise. The arena was the home of the Miami Heat from 1988–1999, the Florida Panthers from 1993–1998, the University of Miami basketball teams from 1988–2003, the Miami Hooters of the Arena Football League from 1993–1995, the Miami Matadors of the ECHL in 1998, the Miami Manatees of the WHA2 in 2003, and the Miami Morays indoor football team since 2005. The first game played by the Heat in their first home was a loss to the Los Angeles Clippers, 111-91, on November 5, 1988; the first victory came a month and a half later against the Utah Jazz, 101-80.

The arena also hosted the 1990 NBA All-Star Game, the 1991 WWF Royal Rumble, the 1994 NCAA Men's Basketball East Regional Final and the NHL's 1996 Stanley Cup Finals. The 2001 Christmas Eve episode of WWF Monday Night Raw featuring The Rock was also held here.

By 1998, the Miami Arena, like most indoor sports arenas built in the late 1980s, was beginning to show its age, despite being only 10 years old. Its seating capacity was one of the lowest of any NBA or NHL arena. In addition, sports teams in general began wanting newer, more updated facilities, specifically luxury suites and new concessions. On January 2, 2000, the Heat moved to the American Airlines Arena located three blocks east of Miami Arena on the shore of Biscayne Bay. The Panthers also left Miami Arena to play at what is now the BB&T Center located in Sunrise, Florida right near Florida's largest outlet mall, Sawgrass Mills.

Most of the concerts that were held at Miami Arena are now held at newer venues, including the BankAtlantic Center, American Airlines Arena or the Seminole Hard Rock Casino in Hollywood, Florida.

Since then, the arena became mostly inactive. The arena was sold in a public auction in 2004 to Glenn Straub, an investor from Palm Beach County, Florida, for $24 million less than the $52 million the city of Miami paid for its original construction. Miami Arena was sometimes called the "Pink Elephant", because it was a white elephant with pink colored walls.

The arena was easily accessible via mass transit, with a Metrorail stop at Historic Overtown/Lyric Theater station just across the street (once known as Overtown/Arena station). Miami-Dade city buses also service the arena area downtown.

On August 3, 2008, Straub announced in a television interview that the interior of the arena had been cleared out and that the building would be demolished by the end of the month. On September 21, 2008, the roof of the Miami Arena was imploded. While the exterior walls remained standing after the implosion, demolition continued until the falling of the west wall on October 21, 2008.