Blue Cross Arena

The Blue Cross Arena at the War Memorial (originally Rochester Community War Memorial and commonly Blue Cross Arena) is a multi-purpose indoor arena, located in Rochester, New York. Its maximum seating capacity is 13,000. For hockey and lacrosse, its seating capacity is 11,200.

The arena opened on October 18, 1955, as the Rochester Community War Memorial, it was renovated in the mid-1990s and reopened as The Blue Cross Arena at the War Memorial, on September 18, 1998.

It is home to the Rochester Americans, of the AHL, the Rochester Razorsharks, of the PBL and the Rochester Knighthawks, of the NLL.

History

The arena was built on a downtown site, bounded by Exchange Boulevard on the west, East Broad Street on the north, the Genesee River on the east and Court Street on the south. The property was formerly the home of the Kimball Tobacco Co. and other retail buildings. The arena, was paid for by pennies collected by school children in the area. Originally named the Rochester Community War Memorial, opened on October 18, 1955. The building included a full stage on the south end and an exhibition hall located on the basement level. One of the members of the construction team was Gorilla Monsoon.

On March 13, 1996, renovations to expand the arena took place, eliminating the permanent stage at the south end of the building. On July 24, 1998, Blue Cross Blue Shield and City officials announced that the name of the renovated arena would be Blue Cross Arena at the War Memorial. On...
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