Concertgoers will finally get a chance to see Bruce Springsteen live in Winnipeg on Wednesday night, but the long-awaited show is just one of thousands that have been hosted at Canada Life Centre over the past two decades.
Winnipeg’s downtown arena is celebrating a notable anniversary this week — marking 20 years of sports, concerts and other entertainment since the building first opened its doors on Nov. 16, 2004.
The arena, which welcomed its 20 millionth guest last month, opened seven years before the current incarnation of the Winnipeg Jets came into existence. Originally the home of the Manitoba Moose — still one of its main tenants today — the arena was built on the site of the former Eaton’s department store, and the choice of location raised some eyebrows, especially when it came to parking.
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“I suppose what folks didn’t realize was every day 40,000 people come to work downtown,” True North Sports & Entertainment executive Dorian Morphy told 680 CJOB’s The Start.
“They all leave at 5:00 (p.m.) and most of our events are after that. Literally after the first two events — nothing. It wasn’t a topic anymore, but certainly leading up to that first event, (parking was) all people were talking about.”
Morphy, senior vice-president of marketing, said he’s seen the arena go from an idea, to a reality, to one of North America’s busiest venues.
“Timing is everything,” he said.
“I joined the organization out of the U of M in 1996, the first year of the Manitoba Moose. I think it’s been very rewarding, and certainly for us, having it downtown has been really important…. We welcomed our 20-millionth visitor in October — that’s a lot of people.”
The average lifespan of an NHL arena, Morphy said, is about 31 years, but Winnipeg’s facility isn’t about to get replaced any time soon. The goal, instead, is to continue working on upgrades and refreshing the existing building.
“I don’t imagine we’ll be building a new one in 11 years, so our strategy has been one of reinvestment.
“Whether it’s upgrading the washrooms, new scoreboard, sound system, we just continue to reinvest in it.”
Although the Jets are on the road on the exact anniversary date, they have a home game a few days later, and True North is using that for a celebration of the two decades of history.
“The only game within a three-week stretch was Tuesay, Nov. 19. That night, we will celebrate. We’ll do lots of going down memory lane at that game. The first 5K fans in the building will receive a commemorative coin.”
The anniversary game will also serve as the official launch of a new book about the arena’s history.
