Van Andel Arena

[gvsusean]

Went to a hockey game at the VAA and good lord that place is showing its age… reminds me of what I thought of the old Muskegon Fury arena when they first built VAA.

whats the lifespan of these things?

[GR_Urbanist]

It is almost 30 years old! seems hard to believe. It still feels "new" to me. I was a teenager, and remember when it was just a dirt construction site, and one concrete pylon sticking out of the ground. Whenever I biked DT, I would just sit across the street and watch the construction activity. Weirdly I didnt even know what they were building there!

I'm sure it just needs more of an update to the interior more than anything else to be ok for another 15 years.

[Pattmost20]

1 hour ago, GR_Urbanist said:

I'm sure it just needs more of an update to the interior more than anything else to be ok for another 15 years.

A refreshed concession area plus some new seats would do a world of difference. I still think it looks great from the outside and the look and feel inside the arena portion is still fine.

We went to an MLS playoff game in Atlanta last month. Man, that place is a amazing. The seats were super comfortable, the concession area had a huge variety, and everything just felt state of the art. 

[Cookin_peacocks]

Funny you mention this, this is a point of contention of my favorite sports team.. ownership has let the team rot and the facility they play in.

 

Depending on the league, many arenas from the arena boom from the 90s are undergoing either massive MASSIVE renovations, or flat out being replaced. The AHL, on the other hand.... State of the are facilities aren't as necessary. Still, a major renovation is probably needed sooner rather than later.

Edited December 16, 2023 by Cookin_peacocks

[SupercityGR]

Do a full reno and complete the bowl 

[MJLO]

It would seem they are too busy building soccer stadiums, and a redundant use amphitheater, for this to even be on the radar.

[joeDowntown]

Personally, I think they've done a really good job keeping it up over the years. It probably needs a renovation somewhat soon as people want a great experience (and VAA has a bit of a concrete canyon vibe).

But, if they want to do a full overhaul of the inside of the arena, doing it in the summer and having an amphitheater to offset the revenue (and performances) seems ideal. I wouldn't be surprised to see renovation talks heat up as the amphitheater progresses. 

Joe

[RiversideGR]

1 hour ago, MJLO said:

It would seem they are too busy building soccer stadiums, and a redundant use amphitheater, for this to even be on the radar.

Why do you describe the amphitheater as “redundant”?

[MJLO]

13 minutes ago, RiversideGR said:

Why do you describe the amphitheater as “redundant”?

Overlapping is probably a better word than redundant. 

[joeDowntown]

We miss a lot of acts in the summer that can't play indoors as they are setup to play in outdoor venues. So these acts bypass Grand Rapids. I would say it's a complimentary venue.

Joe

[MJLO]

1 hour ago, joeDowntown said:

We miss a lot of acts in the summer that can't play indoors as they are setup to play in outdoor venues. So these acts bypass Grand Rapids. I would say it's a complimentary venue.

Joe

Understood.  Didn’t mean to start a semantical argument. My point was more meant to be that with all of the projects they have going on, I can’t imagine a refresh/upgrade of the current arena is anywhere on their radar. 

[Zads]

I've only lived in the GR area since 2017 and the entire time all I've been thinking is, "when will they upgrade Van Andel Arena?"

I've been to concerts, comedy shows, Griffins games, among others at VAA. I appreciate how close the seats are to the playing/entertainment surface, however the concourse is absolutely god awful.

It's small, hard to walk through when there's a sellout Griffins game or a concert and there's not enough concessions for both the lower and upper bowl on one level.

It's outdated and it needs to be updated. With how much they have going on at the arena now, it's hard to imagine not bringing this up to date.

Personally, I would update the concourse and finish the entire bowl. You have two minor league teams in your building along with a new professional volleyball league. The majority of your sports are taking place between October and May.

My dream would be to add  a second level concourse, but I think that's a pipe dream.

[Pattmost20]

19 hours ago, MJLO said:

Understood.  Didn’t mean to start a semantical argument. My point was more meant to be that with all of the projects they have going on, I can’t imagine a refresh/upgrade of the current arena is anywhere on their radar. 

That was honestly my thought too. Amphitheater is priority #1, soccer stadium is #2. I think if we hear anything about a remodel it wouldn't be until the soccer stadium is well under way. And we'd probably be looking at a time line in the 2028-2030 range at best. 

[Khorasaurus1]

I think completing the bowl would help the concourse issue. The dead ends make the cramped feeling worse.

Plus there's actually space to complete the bowl, and no space to widen the concourse.

[BLUESCRUBS]

Makes me wonder as well if there is a timeline. Kalamazoo is close to getting started on their new $300M downtown arena. Plenty of shows have played Wings Stadium in the past, wondering with a shiny new arena would some of the smaller events look south.

[joeDowntown]

I'm pretty sure Van Andel is a sought after venue as shows do well here. I don't know if a venue in Kalamazoo will syphon much traffic from VAA.

Joe

[cstonesparty]

1 hour ago, joeDowntown said:

I'm pretty sure Van Andel is a sought after venue as shows do well here. I don't know if a venue in Kalamazoo will syphon much traffic from VAA.

Joe

VAA is top five performing mid-size venue every year.  Kzoo won't make a dent.

[Cookin_peacocks]

3 hours ago, BLUESCRUBS said:

Makes me wonder as well if there is a timeline. Kalamazoo is close to getting started on their new $300M downtown arena. Plenty of shows have played Wings Stadium in the past, wondering with a shiny new arena would some of the smaller events look south.

It's going to be much smaller. Maybe some of the lesser demand shows the arena gets, but I wouldn't imagine it gets much at all. I am bummed Kalamazoo is getting a shiny new arena while VAA ages very.... Ungracefully. 

[SupercityGR]

Would be nice to have Devos move the Magic here with a new Arena in the spot of VAA

[gvsusean]

5 hours ago, SupercityGR said:

Would be nice to have Devos move the Magic here with a new Arena in the spot of VAA

Pipe dream, but I agree. Would be amazing.

[SupercityGR]

Removed my attached file. It was attendance figures of the gold. One of the highest attended teams in the g league 

Edited December 21, 2023 by SupercityGR

[Cookin_peacocks]

22 hours ago, SupercityGR said:

Would be nice to have Devos move the Magic here with a new Arena in the spot of VAA

Van andel was envisioned to host an NHL Franchise when it was built. But the NHL moved away from the regional sport to a national sport and that idea died. 

 

[BLUESCRUBS]

Would love an NHL team in GR... but man, it would be hard not still be a die hard Red Wings fan. I just wish Arena Football would have come back.

[joeDowntown]

Downtown GR posted renderings I hadn’t seen of the Arena Linear Park. They said it will connect Van Andel arena to Studio Park. Construction starts in 2026. 

 

[Cookin_peacocks]

My friend from Rochester, New York just dropped this on me 

 

Rochester knighthawks may move to Grand Rapids. The Knighthawks are an NLL team. Box lacrosse. It's a huge regional sport. The Buffalo Bandits, for example, play in a 19,000 seat arena that they share with the NHLs Sabres. I've been hoping for this for so long.