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Tacoma Dome  

Tacoma Dome is an indoor multi-purpose arena in Tacoma, Washington, United States. It is located south of Downtown Tacoma, adjacent to Interstate 5 and Tacoma Dome Station. It is currently used for basketball tournaments by the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA), concerts, and other community events. In its early years, it was used mainly as a venue for minor league ice hockey and indoor soccer and later temporarily hosted professional teams from Seattle.

History

Upon winning an international design competition, local architects McGranahan and Messenger completed the Tacoma Dome at the cost of $44 million; it opened on April 21, 1983. At 530 feet (160 m) in diameter and 152 feet (46 m) in height, the arena seats 20,722 for basketball games, with a maximum capacity of 21,000. It is the largest arena with a wooden dome in the world by volume (the Superior Dome in Marquette, Michigan, is a larger-diameter geodesic dome at 536 feet (163 m) but is 143 feet (44 m) high and seats a maximum of 16,000).

The wood used to make the roof came from trees downed in the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens. Unlike most other arenas of its size, the hall contains little in the way of fixed seating to maximize the flexibility of the seating arrangements and the shape of the playing field. It can also host American football, albeit with seating reduced to 10,000.

The dome’s first event was a concert by American singer/actor Rick Nelson and the Stone Canyon Band as part of the Dome’s opening festivities on April 24, 1983. It was the Seattle SuperSonics’ home floor for the 1994–95 season while the Seattle Center Coliseum was being renovated and was used for various regular Sonics games during other seasons. It also hosted the Tacoma Rockets of the WHL from 1991 to 1995, the Tacoma Sabercats of the WCHL from 1997 to 2002, and the Tacoma Stars indoor soccer team of the MISL from 1983 to 1992. Alpha Electrician Tacoma

The Dome was also the venue of the gymnastics and figure skating events during the 1990 Goodwill Games and home to numerous other minor-league ice hockey and indoor soccer teams. The dome also hosted the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship back-to-back years (1989 and 1990). It was the site of the NCAA Division I-AA football championship game in 1985 and 1986. The Tacoma Dome also hosted National Hockey League preseason exhibition games in 1983, 1984, 1988, 1992, and 1996.

Address: 2727 E D St, Tacoma, WA

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