Wintrust Arena

Wintrust Arena at McCormick Square
Wintrust Arena in May 2018
Map
Wintrust Arena is located in Illinois
Wintrust Arena
Wintrust Arena
Location within Illinois
Wintrust Arena is located in the United States
Wintrust Arena
Wintrust Arena
Location within the United States
Address200 East Cermak Road
LocationChicago, Illinois, U.S.
Coordinates41°51′13″N 87°37′17″W / 41.85361°N 87.62139°W / 41.85361; -87.62139
Public transit
  Green Line
at Cermak–McCormick Place
OwnerMetropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority[1]
OperatorOak View Group[1]
Capacity10,387[2]
Construction
Broke groundNovember 16, 2015
OpenedOctober 14, 2017 (2017-10-14)
Construction cost$173 million[1]
ArchitectPelli Clarke Pelli Architects[1][3]
Moody Nolan (architect of record)
AECOM (sports architect)
Services engineerIMEG Corp.[4]
General contractorClark Construction[5]
Tenants
DePaul Blue Demons men's basketball (NCAA) (2017–present)
DePaul Blue Demons women's basketball (NCAA) (2017–present)
Chicago Sky (WNBA) (2018–present)
Website
wintrustarena.com
Wintrust Arena interior

Wintrust Arena at McCormick Square, previously referred to as DePaul Arena or McCormick Place Events Center,[6] is a 10,387-seat sports venue in the Near South Side community area of Chicago that opened in 2017. It is the current home court for the men's and women's basketball teams of DePaul University and serves as an events center for McCormick Place. It also is the home of the Chicago Sky of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA).[7]

The arena was announced in May 2013, with construction planned to begin in 2014, and use expected to begin with the 2016–17 season.[8] The start of construction was delayed to November 2015, with completion delayed until the 2017–18 season. Although DePaul had been seeking a new home arena—it had used Allstate Arena in suburban Rosemont since 1980—it rejected a 10-year offer in November 2012 to play rent free at the United Center.[8] Instead, DePaul planned to use Allstate Arena on a recurring one-year basis until it had a new home.[8] On November 16, 2016, DePaul and the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority (MPEA or "McPier") announced that the new event center at McCormick Square would be called Wintrust Arena. The announcement came after the signing of a letter of intent that contemplated a definitive 15-year sponsorship agreement between DePaul and Wintrust.[9]

  1. ^ a b c d Bergen, Kathy (September 24, 2013). "Design Selected for DePaul Arena Near McCormick Place". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference SwpnsanWAiSL was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Wintrust Arena / Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects". archdaily.com. April 24, 2018. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  4. ^ "Wintrust Arena at McCormick Square". IMEG Corp. Retrieved February 25, 2018.
  5. ^ "Wintrust Arena". Clark Construction. Retrieved February 25, 2018.
  6. ^ "New Pictures of the McCormick Place Event Center/DePaul Arena". chicagoarchitecture.org. June 10, 2014. Retrieved September 19, 2014.
  7. ^ "Mayor Emanuel Joins Chicago Sky to Announce Team's Move to Wintrust Arena". Sky.WNBA.com (Press release). NBA Media Ventures, LLC. February 2, 2018. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
  8. ^ a b c Brennan, Eamonn (May 16, 2013). "Chicago Reveals DePaul Arena Plans". ESPN. Retrieved September 28, 2013.
  9. ^ "Event Center at McCormick Square to be named Wintrust Arena" (Press release). DePaul University Department of Athletics. November 16, 2016. Retrieved November 17, 2016.