Kemper Arena

Capacity: 18,046 (soccer and hockey-full arena); 18,646 (basketball); 19,546 (concerts)
Suites: 24; 2 for TV/Radio Broadcasts; 4 for Handicapped
Restaurant/Lounge: Replay’s
Floor Space: 18,046 square feet; 30,000 square feet with seats retracted
Former Tenants: Brigade, Comets (MISL), Outlaws (UHL), Blades (IHL), RedWings (CHL), Blues (CHL), Scouts (NHL), Kings (NBA), Attack (NPSL), Explorers (WTT), Amercan Royal Rodeo & Livestock Show, Big 8/Big 12 Men’s Basketball Tournament, Knights (ABA)

Kansas City was awarded an NHL franchise in 1972. The team was to begin play in 1974, but there wasn’t a facility to house an NHL team. R. Crosby Kemper stepped in with millions of dollars to build a new arena in Kansas City, Missouri. He designated the stockyards for a new state of the art arena. The arena would be named after him because of his generosity.

Kemper Arena had a rocky history. After standing for around five years, it suffered damage during a major thunderstorm. On the night of June 4, 1979 the arena roof collapsed. This also happened to be the same night the arena’s designer was in town accepting an award for the design. Fortunately for the people of Kansas City, the arena was empty. Just two days prior to the catastrophe, the building hosted 13,500 people for a Tractor Pull.

From 1974-2005, Kemper Arena was home to five professional hockey teams. The Scouts, KC Blues, KC Red Wings, Blades, and Outlaws all called the Kemper their home. The Blades had the longest tenure of any of the teams, having played at Kemper 11 seasons.

The city has sold the building and it has been transformed into a multilevel 8,500 seat sports complex. The facility is now called Hy-Vee Arena.