Charlotte Coliseum

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Construction began in 1986 under architects Odell Associates, who touted a state-of-the-art venue featuring a large eight-sided video scoreboard. However, the arena contained far fewer amenities than its contemporaries; while The Palace of Auburn Hills opened the same year with 180 luxury suites, the Coliseum had just eight. This design choice was part of George Shinn's strategy to secure an NBA franchise for the city. On August 12, 1988, disaster struck when the $3.2 million scoreboard, weighing 40,000 pounds, crashed through the ceiling while being positioned for a US Olympic exhibition game. An alternate floor was rushed from the old Coliseum to save the event. Max Muhleman of Private Sports Consulting later described the building as 'the last of the propeller airplanes before the jets came.' Despite these flaws, the Hornets led the NBA in attendance for eight of their first nine seasons, fueled by a fanbase that packed the venue nearly every night until Shinn's personal scandals and management decisions caused support to dwindle.

In Their Own Story

The Coliseum's timeline is defined by extremes. It opened with chaos when its massive scoreboard plummeted to the floor days after its dedication, yet it went on to host 371 consecutive sell-outs, including seven playoff games. The Hornets capitalized on Charlotte's deep college basketball roots, filling the cavernous space where fans felt close to the action despite the arena's size. By 2001, the venue hosted the largest crowd in WNBA history during a Charlotte Sting playoff run. However, the narrative shifted as the team struggled; before relocating to New Orleans in 2002, attendance dropped to last place among the league's 29 teams. The building found an ironic final purpose in the fall of 2005, serving as a shelter for those fleeing Hurricane Katrina. Its final NBA game occurred on October 26, 2005, when the Bobcats played the Indiana Pacers in a preseason matchup. Just two years later, the property was sold and imploded.

Reader's Guide

Visitors to the site today find City Park, a mixed-use development of townhomes, apartments, hotels, and restaurants constructed on the former grounds. A plaque honoring the arena stands near the front entrance. While the building is gone, remnants of its history persist; Hive Drive, named after the team's nickname 'The Hive,' still leads to the site, and signs on Billy Graham Parkway directed drivers to the 'Coliseum Area' for years after the 2007 demolition. The arena hosted significant cultural moments beyond sports, including the 1994 Men's Final Four and the 1996 Women's Final Four (co-hosted with Davidson College). The Grateful Dead performed nine times there between 1989 and 1995, while the Jerry Garcia Band added a final performance in November 1991.

Did You Know?

• The arena's $3.2 million scoreboard crashed through the ceiling just one day after the building's dedication in August 1988.
• The Charlotte Coliseum held only eight luxury suites, compared to 180 at The Palace of Auburn Hills which opened the same year.
• Before hosting NBA games again for the Bobcats in 2004-2005, the arena served as a shelter for Hurricane Katrina evacuees in late 2005.
• The venue hosted 371 consecutive NBA sell-outs from December 1988 to November 1997, spanning nearly nine seasons.