Salt Palace (arena)

Salt Palace
Address 100 West South Temple
Salt Lake City, UT 84101
Owner Salt Lake County
Operator Salt Lake County
Capacity 12,616 (basketball)
10,594 (hockey)
Surface Multi–Surface
Construction
Broke ground March 10, 1967[1]
Opened July 12, 1969[2]
Closed 1993
Demolished 1994
Construction cost $17 million
Architect Bonneville Architects[3]
General contractor Alfred Brown Co./Robert E. McKee, Inc.[4]
Tenants
Utah Jazz (NBA) (1979–1991)
Utah Stars (ABA) (1970–1975)
Salt Lake Golden Eagles (WHL/CHL/IHL) (1969–1991)

The Salt Palace was an indoor arena located in Salt Lake City, Utah. It was built on land that was once the "Little Tokyo" area of the city. Construction was pushed by Salt Lake's bid committee for the 1972 Winter Olympics, Gen. Maxwell E. Rich, president of the Greater Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce, Gov. Calvin L. Rampton, and Salt Lake Tribune publisher John W. Gallivan.[5] The Salt Palace was completed in 1969 at the cost of $17 million and sat 10,725.[5] The arena, later expanded to 12,666 seats,[6] was the home of the Utah Stars of the American Basketball Association from 1970 to 1975, the Salt Lake Golden Eagles hockey club from 1969 to 1991, and the Utah Jazz from 1979 to 1991. In 1994, three years after the Jazz moved into the Delta Center (now Vivint Smart Home Arena), the Salt Palace was demolished. A convention center of the same name stands on the site today. From 1980 until the arena's closing, the arena was officially called the Salt Palace Acord Arena in memory of Thayne and Lorraine Acord.[7]

Basketball: Utah Stars to Jazz

When the Los Angeles Stars of the American Basketball Association (ABA) moved to Salt Lake City following the 1969-70 season, the Salt Palace had a major tenant. The Stars were a major success initially, defeating the Kentucky Colonels in the ABA Finals and capturing the ABA Championship in 1970-71, behind Finals MVP Zelmo Beaty.[8] The Stars set an ABA attendance record in that season (6,100 per game), and would continue to draw well and field excellent teams in the following seasons. The team reached the ABA Finals again in 1973-74, before losing to the New York Nets and Julius Erving.[9] However, the franchise declined with a 38-46 season in 1974-75, despite drawing 8,500 fans per game. Financial problems plagued owners of the franchise and the team folded on December 2, 1975 (4-12 record) after the franchise could not make payroll. On May 19, 1976, the ABA Spirits of St. Louis announced that they planned to relocate to Salt Lake City and the Salt Palace as the Utah Rockies for the 1976–77 season.[10] However, negotiations for the ABA-NBA merger were completed and the Spirits/Rockies were one of two ABA teams disbanded in the merger.[8] The fan support that the Stars received established Salt Lake City as a viable basketball market, setting the stage for the NBA's New Orleans Jazz to relocate and become the Utah Jazz in 1979.[11]

Seating Capacity

Capacity over the years for basketball:[12]

AC/DC concert deaths

On January 18, 1991, three teenagers were killed at an AC/DC concert at the Salt Palace. When AC/DC took the stage, the crowd rushed towards the stage, trampling the three. Security tried to get the band to stop playing but failed to tell the band that people were being trampled for nearly 20 minutes, although the band stopped playing as soon as they discovered what had happened.[13] Blame was pointed at several different groups, including the fans, the band, the security personnel, and the Salt Palace's festival seating arrangement.[14] The families of the victims sued AC/DC, as well as other groups associated with the concert, in connection with the deaths, and eventually settled out of court.[15]

References

  1. ↑ "Ceremony Signals Start of Palace Construction". The Salt Lake Tribune. March 11, 1967. p. 21. Retrieved February 16, 2015.
  2. ↑ Genessy, Jody (July 12, 2009). "Concerts and Championships: Salt Palace Marks 40 Years". Deseret News. Salt Lake City. Retrieved February 16, 2015.
  3. ↑ Gross, Peter L. "The Architectural History of Utah" (PDF). University of Utah. p. 239. Retrieved February 16, 2015.
  4. ↑ Williams, Clarence D. (March 1, 1967). "Salt Palace' Contract Commissioners Accept Bid for $11,699,000". The Salt Lake Tribune. p. 13. Retrieved February 16, 2015.
  5. 1 2 "Opening Bid". Continuum Magazine. University of Utah. 2001. Retrieved January 16, 2014.
  6. ↑ "History of the Delta Center". State of Utah. June 11, 1990. Retrieved January 16, 2014.
  7. ↑ "Acord Family Receives Plaque from Arena". Deseret News. Salt Lake City. July 27, 1993. Retrieved February 16, 2015.
  8. 1 2 "Anaheim Amigos/Los Angeles Stars/Utah Stars Year-by-Year Notes". Remember the ABA. Retrieved January 16, 2014.
  9. ↑ "Utah Stars". Remember the ABA. Retrieved January 16, 2014.
  10. ↑ "Houston Mavericks/Carolina Cougars/Spirits of St. Louis Year-by-Year Notes". Remember the ABA. Retrieved January 16, 2014.
  11. ↑ "New Orleans Jazz - Year Five". Hornets Report. Retrieved January 16, 2014.
  12. ↑ 2013-2014 Utah Guide
  13. ↑ Rogerson, Kenneth S.; Adams, Brooke (January 22, 1991). "Concert Stampede Claims BYU Student as 3rd Victim". Deseret News. Salt Lake City. Retrieved February 16, 2015.
  14. ↑ Evensen, Jay; Jacobsen–Wells, JoAnn (February 9, 1991). "S.L. County Finds No Negligence in Concert Deaths". Deseret News. Salt Lake City. Retrieved February 16, 2015.
  15. ↑ Funk, Marianne (December 17, 1992). "Families Settle Suits Over AC/DC Concert Deaths". Deseret News. Retrieved February 16, 2015.
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