The Kress Events Center, also known as the KEC or the Kress, is a multipurpose athletic facility located in

Green Bay, Wisconsin Green Bay is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The county seat of Brown County, it is at the head of Green Bay (known locally as "the bay of Green Bay"), a sub-basin of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Fox River. It is above sea le ...

on the

University of Wisconsin–Green Bay The University of Wisconsin–Green Bay (UW-Green Bay, UWGB, or Green Bay) is a public university in Green Bay, Wisconsin, with regional campuses in Marinette, Wisconsin, Marinette, Manitowoc, Wisconsin, Manitowoc, and Sheboygan, Wisconsin, Shebo ...

campus. The facility's main gym (Kress Events Center Arena) hosts the UW-Green Bay women's basketball and volleyball teams. Other facilities onsite include a fitness center shared by athletes and the student body, athletic training facilities, and the administrative offices of UW-Green Bay's athletics program.

History

UW-Green Bay sought funding to renovate its aging athletic facility, the Phoenix Sports Center (built in 1975), as early as 2003. The school received $7.5 million in funding from the state, and expected an equal amount of private donations to fund the renovation. The remainder of the money was to be raised through an increase in student segregated fees, which pay for student life and other recreational activities. As of 2017, students were still paying off the facility through their segregated fees. After receiving a large donation from the George F. Kress Foundation, the school was able to begin construction, the new facility bearing Kress' name. Officially announced on December 29, 2004, construction began November 2, 2005 and the facility opened two years later that same month. The first event hosted in the new building was a volleyball match against UW-Milwaukee. UW-Green Bay holds its spring graduation ceremony at the Kress Events Center, and three out of the four area high schools ( Green Bay East,

West West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...

and

Southwest The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...

) hold their graduation ceremonies at the KEC. In 2007, the KEC hosted a joint concert featuring Christian rock groups

Switchfoot Switchfoot is an American rock band from San Diego, California. The band's members are Jon Foreman (lead vocals, guitar), Tim Foreman (bass guitar, backing vocals), Chad Butler (drums, percussion), and Jerome Fontamillas (guitar, keyboards, ...

and

Relient K Relient K is an American rock band formed in 1998 in Canton, Ohio, by Matt Thiessen, Matt Hoopes, and Brian Pittman Board Message during the band members' third year in high school and their time at Malone University. The band is named after ...

. UW-Green Bay's student programming group had booked pop singer

Kesha Kesha Rose Sebert (; born March 1, 1987), formerly stylized as Ke$ha, is an American singer and songwriter. In 2005, at age 18, Kesha was signed to Kemosabe Records. Her first major success came in early 2009 after she was featured on Americ ...

for a concert at the KEC in spring 2014, but the event was ultimately cancelled. The KEC has also played host to political rallies during campaign seasons, including

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...

in 2008 and

Bernie Sanders Bernard Sanders (born September8, 1941) is an American politician who has served as the junior United States senator from Vermont since 2007. He was the U.S. representative for the state's at-large congressional district from 1991 to 20 ...

in 2016.

Facilities

Phoenix Sports Center

The KEC was built around the existing Phoenix Sports Center and retains a number of its original facilities, including: * Two full-size gyms (old East and West Gyms), typically used for intramural basketball or volleyball * Some older athletic training facilities, and the swimming, softball, and nordic skiing team rooms * The Peter F. Dorschel Natorium, a swimming and diving facility * Racquetball courts

Facilities added with KEC expansion

* Kress Events Center Arena, a 4,018-seat gym and the facility's main event venue * Men's and women's soccer team rooms, basketball team rooms *

Dick Bennett Richard A. Bennett (born April 20, 1943) is an American former college basketball coach who is best known for building the Wisconsin-Green Bay Phoenix men's basketball program into a mid-major power and revitalizing the Wisconsin Badgers basket ...

Gym, named for the coach who brought success to UW-Green Bay's basketball team in the 1990s. Mainly used as a practice gym for the basketball teams, the gym is open to students when not in use by athletics. * A two-level fitness center used by both athletes and students * An indoor turf gym * A studio used for fitness classes * Administrative offices for UW-Green Bay Athletics

References

External links