SNHU Arena
The SNHU Arena (Southern New Hampshire University Arena) is an indoor events arena in Manchester, New Hampshire, and seats 9,852 for ice hockey, 11,140 for basketball and up to 11,770 for concerts.
| Full name | Southern New Hampshire University Arena |
|---|---|
| Former names | Manchester Civic Arena (planning/construction) Verizon Wireless Arena (2001–16) |
| Location | 555 Elm Street, Manchester, New Hampshire 03101 |
| Coordinates | 42°59′11″N 71°27′44″W |
| Owner | City of Manchester |
| Operator | ASM Global |
| Capacity | 9,852 (hockey) 11,140 (basketball) 10,050 (end stage) 12,000 (centerstage concerts) |
| Surface | Multi-surface |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | April 13, 2000 |
| Opened | November 15, 2001 |
| Construction cost | $68 million ($116 million in 2022 dollars) |
| Architect | HOK Sports Lavallee Brensinger Architects |
| Project manager | ScheerGame Sports Development, LLC. |
| Structural engineer | LeMessurier Consultants |
| General contractor | Gilbane/Harvey |
| Tenants | |
| Manchester Monarchs (AHL) (2001–2015) Manchester Wolves (af2) (2004–2009) Manchester Monarchs (ECHL) (2015–2019) New England Liberty (LFL) (2016) | |
The facility was originally known during construction as Manchester Civic Arena, and this name still appears on most of the directional signs around town. Its naming rights were sold prior to opening in 2001 and was called Verizon Wireless Arena.
On February 2, 2016, Southern New Hampshire University announced that it had purchased the naming rights from the then SMG (property management). The specific amount of money involved was never revealed, but it is known that the deal provides for student internships at the arena, and that the school will be able to use the arena for its own sporting and other events. The partnership between SMG and the university will run for a period of at least ten years after the arena officially changed its name on September 1, 2016.
In October 2019, SMG property management company merged with AEG Facilities, creating ASM Global.
The arena contains 542 club seats, 34 luxury suites, and five party suites.