Kalamazoo Event Center Groundbreaking Celebrates Upcoming Venue

The official groundbreaking of the Kalamazoo Event Center took place September 26 in the downtown area of the Michigan city.

Community leaders, local officials, partners and residents gathered for the ceremony which celebrated the future venue, now in its first phase of construction.

The afternoon began with remarks from local leaders, highlighting the vision behind the project and the years of collaboration that made the moment possible. The ceremonial first shovels of dirt turned with an estimated 3,000–plus in attendance.

“For the city of Kalamazoo, from my perspective, this is an amazing, transformational day,” said Kalamazoo Mayor David Anderson. “I don’t want this to be a secret, but I’m fired up. Great cities have great downtowns, and for downtowns to stay great they have to evolve. They need continual reinvestment. What we are recognizing today is not just an investment, but a transformation investment.”

The facility is projected to host over 225 events a year with its main tenants being Western Michigan University’s hockey program, WMU’s men’s and women’s basketball programs and the ECHL’s Kalamazoo Wings — Kalamazoo’s only professional sports team.

It will also host community events, commencements, trade expos, high school athletics, national touring concerts and family–friendly shows and exhibitions.

“Friday’s ceremonial groundbreaking was a celebration of what this project truly represents — a transformational investment in Western Michigan Athletics and in the city of Kalamazoo,” said Dan Bartholomae, WMU vice president and director of athletics. “This is more than an arena. It will provide our student–athletes with world–class facilities and performance resources to support their holistic development, while also creating a place for WMU, the city of Kalamazoo and the entire Southwest Michigan community to strategically connect.”

The venue is scheduled to open in Fall of 2027, and the city expects it to generate more than $50 million in annual economic impact for the region.

“Two decades in the making, and we’re not building just an arena now,” added Greenleaf Companies Chairman Bill Johnston. “We are building a true community event center, an athletic performance center that happens to have an arena in it, and 30,000 square feet of flat floor space that will be used by the community as well.”