{{short description|Indoor arena in Erie, Pennsylvania}} {{Use American English|date=August 2025}} {{Infobox venue | name = Erie Insurance Arena | image = [[File:Erie Insurance Arena logo.png|150px]]<br />[[File:Erie Insurance Arena - Interior.JPG|300px]] | pushpin_map = Pennsylvania#USA | pushpin_map_caption = Location within Pennsylvania##Location within the United States | pushpin_relief = 1 | pushpin_label = Erie Insurance Arena | former_names = Erie Civic Center<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.erieyouthhockey.com/Page.asp?n=80153&org=erieyouthhockey.com |title=Directions to Ice Rinks |access-date=2014-03-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140320215011/http://www.erieyouthhockey.com/Page.asp?n=80153&org=erieyouthhockey.com |archive-date=2014-03-20 |url-status=dead }}</ref><br />Louis J. Tullio Arena | address = 809 French Street | location = [[Erie, Pennsylvania]], U.S. | coordinates = {{Coord|42|7|41|N|80|4|51|W|region:US-PA_type:landmark|display=title,inline}} | broke_ground = September 1981 | opened = {{Start date|1983|6|7}}<ref name="ETN">{{cite news|title=Millions Have Flocked to Major Downtown Venue Since June 1983|first=Kevin|last=Flowers|url=http://www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080615/NEWS02/806150405/-1/ETN|newspaper=[[Erie Times-News]]|date=June 15, 2008|access-date=June 15, 2008|archive-date=June 6, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110606215128/http://www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080615/NEWS02/806150405/-1/ETN|url-status=dead}}</ref> | renovated = Dec 2011 &ndash; Sept 2013 | owner = Erie County Convention Center Authority | operator = Erie County Convention Center Authority | construction_cost = [[United States dollar|$]]9.3 million<ref name="ETN"/> | architect = Heidt, Evans & Salata (original)<br />Sink Combs Dethlefs (renovation) | general_contractor = | tenants = [[Erie Golden Blades]] ([[Atlantic Coast Hockey League (1981–87)|ACHL]]) (1983–1987)<br />[[Erie Panthers]] ([[ECHL]]) (1988–1996)<br />[[Erie Wave]] ([[World Basketball League|WBL]]) (1990–1992)<br />[[Erie Otters]] ([[Ontario Hockey League|OHL]]) (1996–present)<br />[[Erie Invaders]] ([[Indoor Football League (1999-2000)|IFL]]) (2000)<br />[[Erie Freeze]] ([[American Indoor Football Association|AIFL/AIFA]]) (2005–2007)<br />[[Erie BayHawks (2008–2017)|Erie BayHawks]] ([[NBA Development League|NBA D-League]]) (2008–2017)<br />[[Erie Explosion]] ([[Southern Indoor Football League|SIFL]]/[[United Indoor Football League|UIFL]]/[[Continental Indoor Football League|CIFL]]/[[Professional Indoor Football League|PIFL]]) (2011&ndash;2015)<br />Lake Erie Eagles ([[National College Prospects Hockey League|NCPHL]]/[[Canadian Premier Junior Hockey League|CPJHL]]) (2016–2018)<br />[[Erie BayHawks (2017&ndash;19)|Erie BayHawks]] ([[NBA G League]]) (2017&ndash;2019)<br />[[Erie BayHawks (2019–)|Erie BayHawks]] ([[NBA G League]]) (2019–2020) | seating_capacity = 6,716 (Hockey)<br />6,562 ([[Indoor American football|Indoor football]])<br />6,982 (Basketball)<br />9,360 (Concert) | website = {{URL|erieinsurancearena.com}} }}

'''Erie Insurance Arena''' (originally known as '''Erie Civic Center''' and later, '''Louis J. Tullio Arena''') is a multi-purpose indoor [[arena]] in the [[Downtown Erie|downtown]] area of [[Erie, Pennsylvania]]. It is home to the [[Erie Otters]] of the [[Ontario Hockey League]] and is the former home of the [[Erie BayHawks (2008–2017)|Erie BayHawks]] of the [[NBA Development League]]. It was built in 1983 as part of the Erie Civic Center Complex Plaza, which also includes the [[Warner Theatre (Erie, Pennsylvania)|Warner Theatre]] and [[UPMC Park]] &- all of which are administered by the Erie County Convention Center Authority. The arena is named for the [[Erie Insurance Group]], which purchased the [[naming rights]] in May 2012.

==History== Erie Insurance Arena was built for $9.3 million in 1983. It opened in June 1983 with a [[Beach Boys]] concert. Since then, it has hosted entertainers including [[Elton John]], [[Rod Stewart]], [[Cher]], [[Kiss (band)|Kiss]], [[Barry Manilow]], [[Alan Jackson]], [[Trans-Siberian Orchestra]], Def Leppard and [[Alice Cooper]]. Erie Insurance Arena has also featured [[Blippi]], [[Disney on Ice]], [[World Championship Wrestling|WCW]], [[World Wrestling Entertainment|WWE]], [[Total Nonstop Action Wrestling|TNA Wrestling]], the [[Harlem Globetrotters]], and the [[Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus]].<ref name="renovation"/>

In May 2012, the Erie County Convention Center Authority and the [[Erie Insurance Group]] announced a 10-year, $3 million naming agreement that would rename the former Louis J. Tullio Arena, "Erie Insurance Arena." This renaming coincided with the completion of the current $42 million renovation project, which was completed in September 2013.<ref>{{cite news |title=Tullio Arena to Become Erie Insurance Arena|first=Kevin|last=Flowers|url=http://www.goerie.com/article/20120510/NEWS02/305099873/Tullio-Arena-to-become-Erie-Insurance-Arena|newspaper=[[Erie Times-News]]|date=May 10, 2012|access-date=May 14, 2012}}</ref> The renovation, designed by Friday/Sink Combs Dethlefs Joint Venture Architects, modernized the arena and added some new sections and a landscaped park entrance. Construction on the project was carried out by the [[Pittsburgh]]-based [[Turner Construction Company]]. Improvements included additional seating and concourses. To accommodate this, its footprint expanded from the original {{convert|152,000|sqft|adj=on}} to {{convert|218,000|sqft|adj=on}}. This increased the venue's capacity to 6,833 for hockey, 6,754 for basketball, and about 9,000 for concerts. Erie Insurance Arena now has enlarged lobbies, more box office windows, luxury suites, administrative offices, mechanical rooms, training areas, new locker rooms, and a club level sponsored by the ''[[Erie Times-News]]''. Funding for the renovations derived from $32 million pledged by former Pennsylvania governor Ed Rendell, combined with $10 million paid by [[Erie County, Pennsylvania|Erie County]].<ref name="renovation">{{cite web|title=Louis J. Tullion Arena to Undergo $42 Million Renovation & Expansion |url=http://www.erieevents.com/_pdf/Louis%20J%20Tullio%20Arena%20Renovation%20%20Expansion%20Press%20Release.pdf |publisher=Erie County Convention Center Authority |date=October 16, 2012 |access-date=October 16, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004221607/http://www.erieevents.com/_pdf/Louis%20J%20Tullio%20Arena%20Renovation%20%20Expansion%20Press%20Release.pdf |archive-date=October 4, 2013 }}</ref> The arena has hosted numerous high school and college basketball games. Two of the most notable basketball games were between [[Cathedral Preparatory School]] and McDowell and local colleges, Gannon University and Mercyhurst University. Both games featured rival schools. Both games generated the most attended high school and college basketball games in city history, both selling out at 5,500.

In September 2014, the Erie County Convention Center Authority completed a $1.4 million upgrade to the arena, which had been dropped from the previous renovation due to a tightened budget. This upgrade included a closed-circuit video system, high-definition video panels on the east and west ends of the arena, and a high-definition "center ice" video scoreboard. The new scoreboard replaced the scoreboard added in 2006. The video boards replaced scoreboards from the original construction of the arena in 1983. The new scoreboard and video boards were manufactured by [[Daktronics]].<ref>{{Cite news|title=Erie Insurance Arena to Get New, High-Definition, Video Scoreboard|first=Kevin|last=Flowers|url=http://goerie.com/erie-insurance-arena-to-get-new-high-definition-video-scoreboard|newspaper=[[Erie Times-News]]|date=May 15, 2014|access-date=January 24, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141023072732/http://goerie.com/erie-insurance-arena-to-get-new-high-definition-video-scoreboard|archive-date=October 23, 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Television== * [[World Wrestling Entertainment|World Wrestling Federation]] taped their [[WWF Superstars of Wrestling|WWF Superstars]] and [[WWF Wrestling Challenge]] television programs from 1991 to 1995.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cagematch.net/?id=8&nr=1&page=4&search=Erie%2C+Pennsylvania%2C+USA|title=World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) Events from Erie, Pennsylvania}}</ref> * [[World Championship Wrestling]] taped their [[WCW Thunder]], [[WCW Worldwide]], and [[WCW Saturday Night]] television programs from the Erie Civic Center from 1997 to 2000.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cagematch.net/?id=8&nr=2&page=4&search=Erie%2C+Pennsylvania%2C+USA|title=World Championship Wrestling (WCW) Events from Erie, Pennsylvania}}</ref>

==2011 NCAA Women's Frozen Four== Louis J. Tullio Arena, in conjunction with [[Mercyhurst University|Mercyhurst College]], hosted the [[2011 NCAA National Collegiate Women's Ice Hockey Tournament]], in which the [[Wisconsin Badgers women's ice hockey|Wisconsin Badgers]] defeated the [[Boston University Terriers women's ice hockey|Boston University Terriers]] in the championship final by a score of 4–1.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ncaa.com/news/icehockey-women/2011-03-12/boston-first-ever-frozen-four |title=Archived copy |access-date=2011-08-05 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120921071707/http://www.ncaa.com/news/icehockey-women/2011-03-12/boston-first-ever-frozen-four |archive-date=2012-09-21 }}</ref>

==2014 NCAA Women's Division II National Elite Eight== Erie Insurance Arena, in conjunction with [[Gannon University]], hosted the [[NCAA Division II women's basketball tournament]], in which the [[Bentley Falcons]] defeated the [[West Texas A&M Buffaloes]] 73–65.

==Arena attractions== Erie Insurance Arena offers conventional food and beverage offerings such as [[pizza]] and [[corn dog]]s, as well as some more local items such as Greek [[hot dog]]s, Greek nachos, and [[pepperoni]] balls. The venue offers a separate menu for the floor seats, which includes the shrimp cocktail, spinach artichoke dip, steak burger on a pretzel bun, chicken bacon sandwich, [[cheesesteak]], and a vegetable platter. It also features a selection of wine, beer, and mixed cocktail drinks.<ref>{{cite web |title=Tullio Arena Reviews, Erie BayHawks|first=Joshua|last=Guiher|url=http://www.stadiumjourney.com/stadiums/tullio-arena-s1184|work=Stadium Journey|year=2012|access-date=September 7, 2012}}</ref>

==Gallery== <gallery mode="packed" heights="200px"> File:Tullio Arena interior.jpg|Louis J. Tullio Arena, 2008 File:Erie Insurance Arena - Exterior.JPG|Erie Insurance Arena, 2015 </gallery>

==See also== {{Portal|Pennsylvania}} *[[Bayfront Convention Center]] *[[Erie County Field House]]

==References== {{Reflist|2}}

==External links== * {{Official website|http://www.erieinsurancearena.com}} *[http://www.ohlarenaguide.com/otters.htm OHL Arena Guide - Erie Insurance Arena]

{{OHL Arenas}} {{CIFL}} {{Authority control}}

[[Category:Erie, Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Indoor arenas in Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Ice hockey venues in Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Sports venues in Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Ontario Hockey League arenas]] [[Category:Erie BayHawks (2008–2017)]] [[Category:Erie BayHawks (2017–2019)]] [[Category:Erie BayHawks (2019–2021)]] [[Category:Sports in Erie, Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Buildings and structures in Erie, Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Tourist attractions in Erie, Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Sports venues completed in 1983]] [[Category:1983 establishments in Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Wrestling venues in Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Sports venues in Erie, Pennsylvania]]