The Iowa Events Center is a public events complex located in downtown

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

History

The Iowa Events Center consists of the existing

Community Choice Credit Union Convention Center Community Choice Credit Union Convention Center (formerly known as Veterans Memorial Auditorium) is a building located in Des Moines, Iowa, that is part of the Iowa Events Center. Named to honor the World War II veterans of Polk County, it opened o ...

, the existing Polk County Convention Complex, the new

Hy-Vee Hy-Vee, Inc. () is an employee-owned chain of supermarkets in the Midwestern and Southern United States, with more than 280 locations in Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and soon Indiana, Kentucky, ...

Hall, and the new Wells Fargo Arena. The new buildings were designed by Populous (formerly HOK Sport Venue Event), who were also the architects of the renovated Principal Park in Des Moines, the

United Center United Center is an indoor arena on the Near West Side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is home to the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League (NHL). It is named ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, and many other

arena An arena is a large enclosed platform, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators ...

s and stadiums in the

. The project cost $217 million, making this the largest public project in

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to th ...

history. Funding for the project came from

Polk County Polk County is the name of twelve counties in the United States, all except two named after president of the United States James Knox Polk: * Polk County, Arkansas * Polk County, Florida * Polk County, Georgia * Polk County, Iowa * Polk Count ...

and its cities, private donations, and the Vision Iowa Fund that Gov.

Tom Vilsack Thomas James Vilsack (; born December 13, 1950) is an American politician serving as the 32nd United States Secretary of Agriculture in the Biden administration. He previously served in the role from 2009 to 2017 during the Obama administration. ...

signed into law in 2000. Gambling profits from the

Prairie Meadows Prairie Meadows is a Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racetrack casino located in Altoona, Iowa, United States. History and information In 1984, Prairie Meadows received a license from the Iowa Racing and Gaming commission to operate a horse racing ...

casino in nearby Altoona are expected to pay off the debt. Construction began in early 2002 after Polk County reached a project-labor agreement with local labor unions that guaranteed favorable wages and working conditions in exchange for no

work stoppage Strike action, also called labor strike, labour strike, or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became common during the In ...

s. Polk County was soon sued by

right to work The right to work is the concept that people have a human right to work, or engage in productive employment, and should not be prevented from doing so. The right to work is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and recognized ...

supporters who claimed that the use of a project-labor agreement on a public project violated Iowa's right to work laws. The lawsuit halted construction for several months, but on November 14, 2002, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled in Polk County's favor. On April 22, 2004, Polk County agreed to transfer management of the Iowa Events Center to Global Spectrum, a Comcast subsidiary, of

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

. Global Spectrum soon announced that the new

Iowa Stars The Iowa Stars, later known as the Iowa Chops, were a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. The club was based in Des Moines, Iowa at the Wells Fargo Arena. History The Stars were founded by Howard Baldwin, of Hockey Holdi ...

hockey team would be the center's primary tenant. In September 2004, Global Spectrum announced that ticket purchases will be done through Patron Solutions, another Comcast subsidiary, instead of

Ticketmaster Ticketmaster Entertainment, Inc. is an American ticket sales and distribution company based in Beverly Hills, California with operations in many countries around the world. In 2010, it merged with Live Nation under the name Live Nation Enter ...

Venues

Current

Wells Fargo Arena

Named for title sponsor

Wells Fargo Wells Fargo & Company is an American multinational financial services company with corporate headquarters in San Francisco, California; operational headquarters in Manhattan; and managerial offices throughout the United States and intern ...

Financial Services, Wells Fargo Arena has been the Des Moines area's primary venue for sporting events and concerts since it opened on July 12, 2005. The state high school wrestling and basketball tournaments have been held there since 2006. In fall 2007, it became home to the

Iowa Energy Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to th ...

(later named

Iowa Wolves The Iowa Wolves are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Des Moines, Iowa, and are affiliated with the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Wolves play their home games at the Wells Fargo Arena and compete in the Western ...

) of the NBA D-League/G League. The following spring, the reactivated

Iowa Barnstormers The Iowa Barnstormers are a professional indoor football team based in Des Moines, Iowa. They are currently members of the Indoor Football League (IFL). They play their home games at Wells Fargo Arena, known in indoor football circles as "The ...

arena football Indoor American football, or arena football, is a variation of gridiron football played at ice hockey-sized indoor arenas. While varying in details from league to league, the rules of indoor football are designed to allow for play in a smaller ...

began playing at the Wells Fargo Arena. Wells Fargo Arena seats 15,181 for hockey games, 16,110 for basketball games, and as many as 16,980 for concerts.

Hy-Vee Hall

Hy-Vee Hall, which the

supermarket chain (based in

West Des Moines West Des Moines is a city in Polk, Dallas, Warren, and Madison counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. A majority of the city is located in Polk County, a minority of the city is located in Dallas County, and small portions extend into Warren and Ma ...

) owns the

naming rights Naming rights are a financial transaction and form of advertising or memorialization whereby a corporation, person, or other entity purchases the right to name a facility, object, location, program, or event, typically for a defined period of t ...

to, is the Iowa Events Center's new exhibition hall. It features 100,000 square feet (9,000 m²) of space for trade shows, conventions, and other major events. It also features eight meeting rooms with a total of 15,000 square feet (1,400 m²) of meeting space. The south end of Hy-Vee Hall houses the Iowa Hall of Pride, which honors the achievements of Iowa high school athletes and performers. Although it was still incomplete, Hy-Vee Hall hosted its first event, the Autumn Festival, from October 21 through October 23, 2004. It was formally dedicated on December 15, 2004, while the Iowa Hall of Pride opened to the public on February 23, 2005.

Community Choice Credit Union Convention Center

Originally an arena known as Veterans Memorial Auditorium that served as home to

Drake University Drake University is a private university in Des Moines, Iowa. It offers undergraduate and graduate programs, including professional programs in business, law, and pharmacy. Drake's law school is among the 25 oldest in the United States. His ...

basketball and

, Community Choice Credit Union Convention Center was renovated and reopened as a convention hall in January 2012.

Former

Polk County Convention Complex

Nicknamed "The Plex" the Polk County Convention Complex opened in 1985. It features of exhibition space on two levels and 27 meeting rooms. Polk County originally planned to close the Convention Complex when Hy-Vee Hall opened, but they decided to transfer management of the building to Global Spectrum in August 2004. While the Convention Complex is located south of the other buildings, Global Spectrum marketed it as part of the Iowa Events Center. The facility has since been converted into a YMCA.

References

External links

Iowa Events Center

Iowa Hall of Pride

from AbsoluteDSM.com {{Coord, 41.591944, N, 93.621667, W, region:US_type:landmark, display=title Event venues established in 2003 Convention centers in Iowa Buildings and structures in Des Moines, Iowa Tourist attractions in Des Moines, Iowa 2003 establishments in Iowa