The brand new Hy-Vee Arena, formally known as Kemper Arena
- November 29, 2018
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- lukewade
Bruce Springsteen, Beastie Boys, Korn, Elton John, AC/DC, and Blink 182. What do all of these artists have in common? They all performed at Kemper Arena.
One of my favorite things about the new Hy-Vee Arena is hearing people’s memories of a concert, show or event they remember coming to when they were young or with their friends and family. The first time my wife walked in she said, “I sat waaaay up there for Bob Segar.” and one of my other buddies said, “I remember coming to a WWF show here as a kid”. One of my favorite memories of Kemper was the American Royal BBQ. So how did it go from Kemper Arena to Hy-Vee Arena?
A couple years ago I was able to meet with Steve Foutch with Foutch Brothers construction to discuss a new project he was working on for sports in Kansas City. As soon as he told me what he had planned for Kemper Arena, I knew KC Crew should be involved however we could. Leading up to construction I attended multiple community and partner meetings about how to best rebuild Kemper Arena for the community. KC Crew was happy to support the Foutch team by committing to renting anywhere from 3 to 6 courts per night and moving our offices into the building once it opened.
Kemper reopened mid-September 2018 as Hy-Vee Arena. The new arena has 12 basketball courts that double as 12 indoor volleyball or 36 pickleball courts. Hy-Vee Arena is the nation’s first multi-level sports complex. KC Crew started running Basketball, Indoor Volleyball and Pickleball leagues the first day Hy-Vee Arena opened with a quick fall season of around 250 weekly participants. Our Holiday season, that started at the end of October, has almost 800 weekly participants and we will be moving our offices to Hy-Vee at the end of December 2018, which will make KC Crew Hy-Vee Arena’s biggest tenant for courts and office space.
As of now, Hy-Vee Arena has only opened it’s olympic running track (2nd largest indoor track in the USA) and 12 courts for leagues, tournaments and pick up play, but other vendors are quickly building out their spaces. By the end of December, there will be restaurants, a bar, a gym, break out room and more.
These amenities are just a few of the reasons myself and the KC Crew staff are so excited to be working out of Hy-Vee Arena. Now morning coffee, lunch, a quick workout or pick up game are just mere steps away from our office.
Our winter leagues are filling right now and we will be having a KC Crew office grand opening, happy hour early in 2019 to show off the new space. If you want to see more information about Hy-Vee Arena click here. Hope to see you soon in the West Bottoms.
Thanks for taking the time to read.
Stay Awesome,
Luke Wade
Founder of Awesome