CHARLOTTE — In March, the Charlotte City Council approved $25 million worth of improvements at Bojangles Coliseum and Ovens Auditorium, mainly consisting of heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning upgrades, and to hire a consultant to create a 10-year improvement program.
[ ALSO READ: USA Curling Nationals canceled Thursday at Bojangles Coliseum due to roof leak ]
Those projects include six new air handlers — large pieces of ventilation equipment that can, among other things, better cool the air when trying to keep an ice-hockey rink in playing shape for practices and games, particularly for rinks and arenas in warmer climates. In this example, Bojangles Coliseum’s anchor tenant, the Charlotte Checkers, would be a prime beneficiary. The new air handlers will be installed this summer.
Taking care of the Checkers makes sense: the American Hockey League club, the top affiliate of the National Hockey League’s Florida Panthers, accounts for 40% of coliseum revenue. The arena’s renaissance began with the hockey team’s return in 2015; both the team and Bojangles Coliseum struggled during the previous decade, when the Checkers played uptown as the secondary tenant at Spectrum Center.
Read the full story on CBJ’s website here.