Century 21-Washington State Coliseum
National Register of Historic Places

Century 21-Washington State Coliseum

Seattle, King County, Washington
Listed
May 9, 2018
Type
Building
Period
Modern
Ref No.
100002406

About this property

Climate Pledge Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is located north of downtown Seattle on the campus of the Seattle Center, a 74-acre (30 ha) civic and entertainment center first built for the 1962 World's Fair, the Century 21 Exposition. It sits on the site of the original Washington State Pavilion exhibition facility (alternately referred to as the Washington State Coliseum or Century 21 Coliseum), subsequently bought by the city of Seattle and renovated in 1964 into a sports and entertainment venue, the Seattle Center Coliseum. Following an extensive $1.15 billion site redevelopment from 2018 to 2021, the new arena replaced the older facility, then named KeyArena. It reuses the original building's iconic roof and exterior window curtain walls, which were landmarked by the city in 2017 and added to both the Washington State Heritage Register and the National Register of Historic Places in 2018. An extended atrium on its south end houses the entrance to the modern venue. It holds a seating capacity of 17,151 for ice hockey, 18,300 for basketball, and up to 17,340 for concerts and other events. It is currently home to the Seattle Kraken of the National Hockey League (NHL), the Seattle Storm of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), the Seattle Torrent of the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL), the Seattle University Redhawks men's basketball team, and the Rat City Roller Derby league of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association. It has also played host to the Pac-12 Conference's women's basketball tournament and may be used as a host venue for the Big Ten Conference's Women's Basketball and Men's ice hockey tournaments in the future. Though opening in October 2021, Climate Pledge Arena is sometimes considered the oldest arena in the NHL due to the age of the original roof and exterior walls. The original arena was most notable as the long-time home of the Seattle SuperSonics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The SuperSonics first played at the facility, then the Seattle Center Coliseum, from their founding in 1967 to 1978. After a seven-season stint in the higher capacity Kingdome, they returned to the arena in 1985. The venue's renovation after the 1993–94 season necessitated the relocation of SuperSonics home games to the Tacoma Dome for the 1994–95 season. The Coliseum was renamed KeyArena after KeyCorp bought the naming rights in 1995. The rights lasted through 2010, though the building maintained the name until its 2018 closure for the site redevelopment. The SuperSonics left KeyArena in 2008 amid a controversial relocation to Oklahoma City. The arena was also known for hosting non-NHL hockey teams, first as home to the Seattle Totems of the original Western Hockey League and the Central Hockey League from 1964 to 1975, followed by the Seattle Thunderbirds of the current Western Hockey League from 1995 to 2008.

Location

305 Harrison St.
Seattle, King County, Washington
47.62214, -122.35404

Categories

ENTERTAINMENT/RECREATION
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Battles

Puget Sound War — Battle of Seattle (January 26, 1856)
1856Indian Wars
1.5 mi
Yakama War — Battle of Seattle
1856Indian Wars
1.5 mi

Questions about this property

When was Century 21-Washington State Coliseum listed on the National Register?

Century 21-Washington State Coliseum was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on May 9, 2018.

What type of historic resource is Century 21-Washington State Coliseum?

Century 21-Washington State Coliseum is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Century 21-Washington State Coliseum?

The period of significance for Century 21-Washington State Coliseum is recorded as the modern era, specifically around 1962.

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