Gateway Sports and Entertainment Complex
The Gateway Sports and Entertainment Complex is an entertainment complex located in
The complex mainly consists of Progressive Field, a 34,830-seat baseball park that serves as home of the Cleveland Guardians of Major League Baseball, and Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, a 19,432-seat arena primarily the home of the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association. In addition, the complex includes a transitional space known as Gateway Plaza and the Gateway East parking garage.
Gateway is roughly bounded by East 9th Street to the east, Huron Road to the north, Ontario Street to the west, and Carnegie Avenue to the south, and forms the basis of the larger Gateway District of downtown Cleveland.
The two facilities are connected to Tower City Center and the RTA Rapid Transit system via an underground walkway.
Facilities
Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, originally named Gund Arena and later known as Quicken Loans Arena, has dimensions of 480 feet (150 m) long by 440 feet (130 m) wide by 140 feet (43 m) high (750,000 square feet (70,000 m2)). It was designed by Ellerbe Becket Sports & Venue and Robert P. Madison International Inc., a local architectural firm. Similar to the ballpark's downtown views, the arena has a 108-foot (33 m) by 48-foot (15 m) bay window that faces southeast and shows off the city's industrial Flats. The construction and engineering were completed by an integrated team from Ellerbe Becket. The underground service area can accommodate 26 tour buses.[2] It was built for approximately $152 million and opened on October 17, 1994.
Gateway Plaza is multifunctional open space situated between Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse to the north, Ontario Street to the west, Gateway East parking garage to the west, and Progressive Field to the south. However, it is technically bordered by Bolivar Road, Ontario Street, East 6th Street, and Larry Doby Way. It is primarily concrete roadway, but it does features decorative industrial art pieces and limited green space. On game days, it frequently hosts on-location radio and television broadcasts, along with
The complex was built with two parking garages, which can hold a combined 3,300 cars. On the north end of the complex is the Jack Parking Garage, previously the Gateway North garage. It is a rectangular-shaped structure, with its main entrance on Ontario Street and another two on High Street. Originally, a third floor enclosed walkway above Huron Road connected its southeast corner to Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, but this was removed in 2018 as part of a major renovation project on the arena. A second enclosed walkway was built in 2013 on the northwest corner of the garage that connects to
In between Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse and Progressive Field is the Gateway East garage, an L-shaped structure with two elevated walkways. A third floor enclosed walkway above East 6th Street connects on its western side to the arena, while an open walkway on the south side of the garage connects to the ballpark above Larry Doby Way. Originally there was an additional walkway over Larry Doby Way to the ballpark, but it was removed in 2014 during renovations to Progressive Field.[6] The Gateway East Garage main entrance is on Huron Road, with a season-ticket holders entrance at East 6th and Bolivar and another at East 7th and Bolivar. It is managed by Standard Parking.[7][8]
History
Greater Cleveland Dome Stadium Corporation
The Gateway complex had its genesis in the early 1980s. The city of Cleveland had longed to bring the Cavaliers back to Cleveland since the team left for the Richfield Coliseum in 1974. Moreover, the Browns and Indians were housed in Cleveland Stadium, which was costing the city money in a time when it could ill-afford it. A major-league caliber sporting facility hadn't been built in Cleveland itself since the now-demolished Cleveland Arena opened in 1937.
A multipurpose dome would be the new home to the Browns and Indians, and would attract the Cavaliers back to Cleveland, according to the original proposal by County Commissioner Vincent Campanella.
Still, Cleveland Mayor George Voinovich and Governor Celeste pushed forward to create the Greater Cleveland Dome Stadium Corporation, borrowing $22 million from banks and the state of Ohio.[11] Cleveland Tomorrow, a group of top executives from Cleveland's biggest firms, launched a development fund to further the project, and acquisition of property began in December 1985.[12] By 1989, the site of the former Central Market, a fruit and vegetable market that dated back to 1856,[13] and other adjacent buildings were razed and made into parking lots. However, there were funding gaps and big disagreements as to who would pay to build the project, along with a change in leadership.
Ballot Issue 2
In 1990, new leadership took the baton from the dome stadium group. The team was a partnership of Cleveland Tomorrow, led by lawyer
There was heavy advertising both for and against Issue 2. There was also a Major League Baseball lockout in February 1990 over player salaries. It directly threatened weaker teams, such as the Indians, that did not have the cushion of additional revenues from luxury boxes and other stadium amenities. Just days before the vote, baseball commissioner Fay Vincent attended a city council finance committee meeting and stated, "should the vote [on Issue 2] be a negative one, we may find ourselves confronting a subject we want to avoid."[9]
These factors helped drive a large turnout, as 49.6% of registered voters cast ballots. On May 8, 1990, Issue 2 passed by a slim 51% margin (198,390-185,209).
Both venues were completed in 1994. Todd Greathouse is the current executive director of the Gateway Economic Development Corporation.[2]
References
- ^ Gomez, Henry J. (May 19, 2010). "Cleveland Indians pondering a facelift at Progressive Field, but funding is a mystery". The Plain Dealer. Cleveland, Ohio. Retrieved July 5, 2010.
- ^ a b Gateway Economic Development Corporation Archived 2011-07-23 at the Wayback Machine gatewaysportscomplex.net (accessed July 5, 2010)
- ^ Correa, Enrique (December 30, 2013). "Finishing Touches on Horseshoe Casino's Skywalk". Fox8.com. WJW. Retrieved February 7, 2017.
- ^ Davis, Dave (June 7, 2011). "Cleveland sells Gateway North Garage for $21 million for casino valet center". Cleveland.com. Retrieved February 7, 2017.
- ^ "Parking Rates". JackEntertainment.com. Jack Cleveland Casino. 2017. Retrieved February 7, 2017.
- ^ Toth, Bob (October 29, 2014). "Progress Being Made on Progressive Field Renovations". DidTheTribeWinLastNight.com. Retrieved February 7, 2017.
- ^ "Parking & Transportation". ClevelandGatewayDistrict.com. Historic Gateway Neighborhood Corporation. 2017. Retrieved February 7, 2017.
- ^ "Directions". TheQArena.com. Quicken Loans Arena. 2017. Retrieved February 7, 2017.
- ^ a b c Knight, Jonathan Opening day: Cleveland, the Indians, and a new beginning (accessed July 5, 2010)
- ^ Miller, Jay. "The biggest unbuilt projects of the last 30 years". Crain's Cleveland Business. Retrieved July 5, 2010.
- ^ Carol Poh Miller, Robert Anthony Wheeler Cleveland: a concise history, 1796-1996 (accessed July 5, 2010)
- ^ QUICKEN LOANS ARENA The Encyclopedia of Cleveland History (accessed July 5, 2010)
- ^ CENTRAL MARKET The Encyclopedia of Cleveland History (accessed July 5, 2010)