CenturyLink Center Arena

CHI Health Center Omaha is an arena and convention center in the central United States, located in the North Downtown neighborhood of Omaha, Nebraska. Operated by the Metropolitan Entertainment & Convention Authority (MECA), the facility has an 18,975-seat arena, a exhibition hall, and of meeting space. The arena hosts basketball and hockey games, professional wrestling events, concerts, and the annual shareholders' meeting of Omaha-based conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway, usually held on the first Saturday of May.

The complex opened on September 20, 2003, as Qwest Center Omaha, and adopted the name of CenturyLink Center Omaha on July 15, 2011, as part of a buyout of Qwest by CenturyLink (formerly CenturyTel). In July 2018, CHI Health bought the naming rights to the arena under a 20-year agreement worth $23.6 million, and the arena was renamed CHI Health Center Omaha effective September 1, that year.

The arena's primary tenant is the Creighton University men's basketball team. Through the 2014–15 NCAA ice hockey season, the Omaha Mavericks men's ice hockey team, representing the University of Nebraska Omaha, was also a primary tenant, but the Mavericks moved to the new Baxter Arena effective with the 2015–16 season. Just west of the Missouri River, the elevation at street level is approximately above sea level.

History

Talks of a downtown convention center began in 1993 with the, "Nebraskaplex". It would never be built, and instead, the nearby Omaha Civic Auditorium was renovated. In January 1997, then-Omaha mayor Hal Daub announced the Omaha Convention Center at the 1997 State of the City Address. The proposed convention center received criticism due to its price, and many said it would be a loss of the city. Additionally, in 1999, Council Bluffs, Iowa announced that it would be building its own convention center. However, some officials said it would not pose a major threat to the center.

The bond issue to build the Omaha Convention Center-Arena was passed in May 2000. In August 2000, it was announced that the Metropolitan Entertainment and Convention Authority would be turned into a non-profit and would operate the Omaha Convention Center-Arena. Ground was broken on March 1, 2001, with construction starting shortly after. Before opening, Qwest Communications spent $14 million for the naming rights to the center. The Qwest Center officially opened and held its first event on September 20, 2003.

In 2006, the MCEA funded a project to expand the arena and add an additional 1,472 seats to the upper bowl. The project also included adding restroom facilities and concession stands, as well as updating aesthetics, mechanical systems, and emergency exits. The cost of the project was $6 million. Construction began in May and was completed September 8, 2006.

In 2009, the center saw another renovation with work enveloping the entire building. The $6 million project included new carpet, wallpaper, reupholstered arena seating, and a new scoreboard.

In 2011, after Qwest's merger with CenturyLink, the center's name was changed to CenturyLink Center Omaha and the signs were replaced. In 2018, CHI Health purchased the naming rights to the center for $23.5 million, renaming it to CHI Health Center. The arena received criticism for the name change, many said the name could cause confusion with a clinic or hospital. Others brought into question how CHI was able to afford the naming rights.

In 2021, the center was used to host the Olympic Swim Trials ahead of the 2020 Summer Olympics. In 2023, it was announced that CHI Health Center would be expanded and renovated due to its smaller size. The bond issue was passed in November 2024. Construction began in early 2025 and will renovate the center and would add an additional of space.

Notable events

NCAA Events

The arena has hosted games in the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament four times: first- and second-round games in 2008, 2012, 2015, and 2024; and Midwest Regional games (Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight) in 2018. The arena was planned to host the 2020 tournament's first- and second-round games, but the tournament was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The arena has hosted the NCAA Division I women's volleyball final four in 2006, 2008, 2015, 2020 and 2022. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the arena hosted the entire volleyball tournament that year. Twelve courts were built in the convention center for practices and games. Then, the regional finals, semifinals, and championship were played in the big arena.

The arena also hosted the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships.

Summer Olympics Swimming Trials

The center hosted the nationally televised USA Swimming Summer Olympics trials in 2008, 2012, 2016, and 2021. The center does not have permanent swimming facilities and a team of 200 workers with oversight by Myrtha Pools (which specializes in the construction and dismantling of large-scale temporary pools) constructed them in two weeks. The Omaha Fire Department pumped in of water from hydrants around the center.

The 2008 event averaged more than 12,000 spectators each night.

A storm damaged a portion of the roof known as ''The Hat'' on June 27, 2008. There was no structural damage, but the damage caused water to pour into parts of the Qwest Center, flowed down two sets of arena steps and onto the deck of the competition pool for the USA Swimming Summer Olympic Trials. The schedule for the trials went on as planned.

The pools were dismantled after the event and moved to other cities for permanent installation with the 2008 pool going to the Poseidon Swimming facility in Richmond, Virginia, the 2012 pool going to Charles River Aquatics in Boston, Massachusetts, the 2016 pool going to the Hulbert Aquatic Facility in West Fargo, North Dakota (West Fargo bought the pool via a local group of swim enthusiasts called UP Aquatics for $900,000). and the 2021 pool going to a group in Minneapolis, Minnesota that plans to convert an abandoned book bindery in the city's Near North neighborhood into an Olympic-caliber aquatic center.

Rodeo

From 2006 to 2009, the Professional Bull Riders hosted a Built Ford Tough Series event at the arena, and from 2014 to 2016 they hosted a Velocity Tour event. The PBR returned to host an Unleash the Beast Series event on May 1 and 2, 2021, for their first Premier Series event in 12 years.

Other Events

The arena home to the WWE Judgment Day 2008 pay-per-view, as well as other events from WWE.

The arena has also hosted six championship boxing cards, all involving Omaha native Terence Crawford as he wanted to defend his titles in front of a home crowd. His first bout at the arena, against Yuriorkis Gamboa for the WBO lightweight belt in 2014, was the first championship fight in Nebraska since the Joe Frazier-Ron Stander bout in 1971.

The arena hosts the Nebraska School Activities Association state wrestling championships each February. The tournament moved to what was then Qwest Center Omaha in 2006 after 30 years at Lincoln's Bob Devaney Sports Center.

In 2016, the arena hosted the Kellogg's Tour of Gymnastics Champions.

Facilities

;CHI Health Omaha Convention Center
The convention center has placed Omaha on the convention map since opening in 2003. The center features three exhibit halls, four ballrooms and over 15 meeting rooms.
*Exhibit Hall: The main exhibition room which can be divided into three separate rooms (Halls A-C) depending on configuration. The combined rooms can house over 1,000 or a conference seating more than 16,000 guests.
*Peter Kiewit Grand Ballroom: Named after the founder of the Kiewit Corporation, is the biggest ballroom in the facility. Based on configuration, it can be divided into 3 small ballrooms (Ballroom A-C) or 2 large rooms (North and South). The room is primarily used for graduation ceremonies, charity galas and business conferences.
*Junior Ballroom: This intimate space was designed for private events such as weddings, receptions, banquets and cocktail parties up to 1,000 guests.
;CHI Health Center Arena
The arena is the busiest venue of the complex. Built in 2001, the arena was meant to replace the aging Omaha Civic Auditorium and demolished Ak-Sar-Ben Coliseum. It is the largest arena in the state, seating over 18,000. It contains 32 luxury suites and over a thousand club seats. The arena hosts shows of all genres, including: concerts, family shows, sports, rodeos and circuses. The arena opened September 12, 2003, with a private concert by Grand Funk Railroad. The first official event was the "River City Roundup Fair and Festival", held at both facilities.
;Hilton Omaha
This hotel features 600 guest rooms, 15 meeting rooms, and two ballrooms, an on-site restaurant, and skywalk connection to the convention center. The $71 million property opened April 2004 and has achieved the AAA four-diamond rating for ten years.

Naming

*Qwest Center Omaha
*CenturyLink Center Omaha
*CHI Health Center Omaha

Records and milestones

Top 10 Largest Home Crowds at CHI Health Center Omaha, Creighton History

On the evening of March 8, 2014, the largest crowd to attend a Creighton University basketball game occurred when 18,964 fans witnessed the Creighton men's team defeat Providence on Doug McDermott's career-high senior night performance of 45 points.

On January 13, 2012, the largest crowd to ever watch a hockey game in Nebraska occurred when 16,138 fans attended the game between the University of Nebraska at Omaha and Minnesota-Duluth.

CHI Health Center holds several NCAA attendance records, particularly in women's college volleyball. The three largest crowds to attend NCAA tournament matches were for Nebraska Cornhuskers games at the venue. The highest attendance for any volleyball match in the United States, whether for men or women, occurred on December 19, 2015, when 17,561 fans watched the 2015 NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Championship game between Nebraska and former conference rival Texas. This broke a record set two days earlier, when Nebraska defeated another former conference rival, Kansas, in the national semifinals in front of a crowd of 17,551. In turn, this match broke an attendance record set in 2008, when 17,340 fans watched the NCAA semifinal match between Penn State and Nebraska.

Gallery

File:Creighton Bluejays men's basketball playing (Qwest Center, Omaha, 2007).jpg, Creighton vs Wichita State, 2007
File:Creighton vs. Indiana State at Qwest Center, 2007.jpg, Creighton hosting Indiana State on January 27, 2007
File:Whiteout at Qwest Center.jpg, White Out vs Southern Illinois
File:2008 United States Olympic Trials in Omaha.jpg, US Olympic Swimming Trials in June 2008
File:First Big East Game.JPG, 2013 Scoreboard & Logo
File:Qwest Center Omaha exterior 02.jpg, View looking southeast
File:Qwest Center Omaha exterior 01.jpg, West façade and main entrance
File:QwestCenterOmahaArenaView 2010.jpg, South façade prior to 2011
File:Monday Night Raw at CHI Health Center.jpg, Monday Night Raw on September 4, 2017

See also

* Omaha Civic Auditorium – (defunct)
* Baxter Arena
* Mid-America Center
* Rosenblatt Stadium – (defunct)
* Ak-Sar-Ben – (defunct)
* Charles Schwab Field
* Morrison Stadium
* Liberty First Credit Union Arena
* Werner Park
* List of NCAA Division I basketball arenas
* List of basketball arenas

References

External links

CHI Health Center Omaha Official Website

CenturyLink Center Omaha – GoCreighton.com

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2003 establishments in Nebraska
Indoor arenas in Nebraska
Lumen Technologies
College basketball venues in Nebraska
College ice hockey venues in the United States
Convention centers in Nebraska
Creighton Bluejays basketball venues
Event venues established in 2003
Gymnastics venues in the United States
Ice hockey venues in the United States
Music venues in Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha Mavericks men's ice hockey
Sports venues in Omaha, Nebraska
Sports venues completed in 2003
Swimming venues in Nebraska
Wrestling venues in the United States