Business View Magazine | July 2019

153 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE JULY 2019 Allen County WAR MEMORIAL COLISEUM Remaining relevant T he Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Indiana was conceived in 1944 by the residents of the area as a monument to those who gave their lives in service during World War II, as well as a civic center and venue for community functions and events. Ground was broken in 1950, and the building opened in September 1952 as a ten-thousand seat arena and fifty- thousand-square-foot exhibition facility. The Memorial Coliseum quickly became the site of major professional and amateur sporting events, circuses, ice skating shows, religious gatherings, political rallies, civic and school events, and patriotic observances. Still owned and operated by Allen County, today, the Memorial Coliseum serves the tri-state area as a focal point for family entertainment, arts and culture, sports, and community gatherings. It draws visitors from all over the Midwest and has earned a reputation as one of the most successful facilities of its kind in the country. “We’ve gone 29 consecutive years hosting over a million people per year and our economic impact last year was $113,668,640, with 1,603 use days,” says Randy Brown, the Coliseum’s Executive Vice President and General Manager. “There are 500 employees that consider the Coliseum their place of employment. That’s a combination of the Coliseum; Aramark, our food service division; ESG, our security provider; and Leader Staffing,