Description

The U.S. Cellular Coliseum, located in historic downtown Bloomington on the corner of Front and Madison, is a state-of-the-art, multi-purpose recreation and entertainment facility, which opened April 1st, 2006 with Bloomington Extreme football. The facility is a first-class, air-conditioned community and family center, designed specifically to meet needs for all types of entertainment including major concerts, trade shows, conventions, sports events and civic events.

With over 180,000 square feet of space, the Coliseum boasts a fixed seating capacity of approximately 7,000 for hockey and indoor football games and over 8,000 for concerts and family shows in a horseshoe configuration ideal for end-stage entertainment.

The Coliseum also includes an attached ice facility, the Pepsi Ice Center, for public use that will be operated by the Bloomington Parks and Recreation Department. The Pepsi Ice Center will host youth and adult hockey leagues, figure skating, skating lessons and open public skating.

The Coliseum also includes 24 luxury suites, two large Group Party Suites, 800 Club Seats with a Club Seat holder lounge, and a full service restaurant/bar seating 150 patrons that overlooks the main arena floor. The restaurant will be open during Coliseum events. The Coliseum has an adjacent parking deck with 275 parking spaces that will be used for the Coliseum events and public skating rink.

The City of Bloomington is funding the $37 million venue with private funding through the sale of suites, sponsorships, naming rights, and club seats. The City is funding the public ice rink and attached parking deck through a fourth of one percent sales tax used for downtown projects. The State of Illinois has funded the construction of the infrastructure through grants provided by Illinois First and the Illinois Department of Transportation.