Pyramid Arena - Troubles and Closure

Troubles and Closure

Ever since its inception there have been problems at the Pyramid. On the Pyramid's opening night; the Pyramid earlier in the day while loading in the Judds concert someone shut the pumps off and by the time it was realized, the entire arena began to flood causing stage-hands to sandbag the entire parameter to preserve the electrics which ran under the stage. This also caused plumbing problems and was considered a disaster. The arena was also assumed to be NBA ready. However, when the Memphis Grizzlies came to town, this was discovered not to be the case. The cost of upgrading the structure to NBA standards exceeded the cost of a new stadium. Hence the FedExForum was built and opened in 2004.

When the Forum overtook the Pyramid as the city's primary indoor sports arena, the Pyramid did not have any long term tenants. A committee studied possible uses of the arena in 2005, and considered such uses as converting the arena into a casino, an aquarium, a shopping center, or an indoor theme park. In November 2006, Congressman-Elect Steve Cohen (D-Tennessee) suggested that he would attempt to open a "Mid-American branch" of the Smithsonian Institution in the building. However, none of these plans were ever realized.