Acrisure Arena, a new venue under construction in Palm Springs, California, has celebrated another milestone following the installation of its first seats.
The arena will have a seated capacity of more than 11,000 and will serve as the home of the Coachella Valley Firebirds American Hockey League team. The venue will be owned and operated by Oak View Group.
A ceremony was held on Friday to unveil the installation of Acrisure Arena’s first seats. V. Manuel Perez, a Riverside County Fourth District supervisor, was honoured as the arena’s first ‘sitter’ and helped fit the final bolts on the first seats. The event coincided with the pouring of the arena’s concrete ice floor.
The venue is scheduled to open in December during the 2022-23 AHL season, which will mark the Firebirds’ debut in the competition. The Firebirds are owned and operated by NHL team the Seattle Kraken, which moved into the OVG-operated Climate Pledge Arena last year.
Perez said: “Today represents a very significant construction milestone at Acrisure Arena. It’s an honour to help build and be the very first person to sit and take in the view at Acrisure Arena. I know I speak on behalf of everyone in Riverside County when I say how truly excited we are to have a world-class music and sports venue opening this December in the heart of Coachella Valley.”
John Bolton, senior vice-president at OVG and general manager at Acrisure Arena, added: “It’s one down, and only 10,000+ seats to go. It’s definitely a day of firsts. Our first seat, first professional hockey rink, first day of school for Coachella Valley kids, first day we can imagine this venue filled with thousands of people to experience their bucket-list concerts and family shows.
“Tickets for concerts and family events will be announced in September. We kick off this December 15 with over 100+ nights of amazing entertainment annually.”
Acrisure Arena, which will be the first venue of its kind in the greater Palm Springs area, has a partnership with event promoter Live Nation and is set to host a number of high-profile music concerts when it opens.
Financial technology company Acrisure acquired naming rights to the arena in January as part of a 10-year deal with OVG. Acrisure has since agreed a deal to sponsor the home stadium of the NFL’s Pittsburgh Steelers.
Image: Oak View Group
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