Under a plan being explored by developer and team owner Martin Lind and local officials, a new Colorado Eagles arena could anchor a hockey complex near Budweiser Event Center.
The idea being weighed by Lind, as well as officials from the City of Loveland and Larimer County, would see a new arena as the centerpiece of a larger sports complex/development plan. Among the offerings that could be included in the project would be a 10,000-seat multi-use arena that hosts Eagles home games and other events, surrounded by a slate of facilities that would serve youth hockey programs, community skating, and more.
The plan is being viewed as a way to create a development that helps grow hockey in the region. More from the Denver Post:
The project will sit just east of Interstate 25 in Loveland near the Budweiser Event Center, the Eagles’ longtime home, and include a 300-room hotel overlooking an entertainment strip where the Larimer County Fairgrounds (a.k.a The Ranch) currently sits.
“There’s going to be something magnificent built on The Ranch in the next two years,” Lind said.
Once completed, the new arena will become the Eagles’ new home, turning the BEC into a dirt-based facility — possibly a rodeo/equestrian center and monster truck/motocross venue. It could also become a parking lot.
In addition to three sheets of ice serving youth hockey programs, figure skating and community skates, an Olympic swimming pool and training center is planned for the massive sports complex.
Prior to the 2018-19 season, the Eagles had their application to withdraw from the ECHL accepted and were added to the AHL as its 31st team. The club is the AHL affiliate of the Colorado Avalanche, and sold out nearly all of its home games last season at the Budweiser Events Center–a venue with a hockey capacity of 5,289.
