Richmond Coliseum

Richmond Coliseum is an arena in Richmond, Virginia, where the SPHL Richmond Renegades played until the 2008-2009 season and the American Indoor Football Association Richmond Raiders will play starting with the 2010 season. It is also the venue for various large concerts. The arena opened in 1971 and holds 13,500 people. A small fire occurred there in 1997, shutting it down for repairs. It is managed by SMG.

Layout
The Richmond Coliseum is laid out on 6 levels. In order from lowest to highest they are the event level, the mezzanine, the lower concourse, the upper concourse, the 300 level and the ring. The event level is where the event floor (and ice rink) is located, as well as all the support rooms for events and the building. Team locker rooms, star dressing rooms, Exhibition halls, the Coliseum Club and the kitchens are located on the event level. The Clay St tunnel, one of the innovative features of the coliseum, is on the event level and allows vehicles, including tractor trailers and monster trucks, to pull into the coliseum. It is accessed at the intersection of Clay St and Eighth St. The tunnel provides storage for shows, and parking for coliseum personnel. The mezzanine is where the administrative offices for the coliseum are located. The Leigh St. entrance is on this level. The lower concourse is the access for all lower level seating and suites. The Fifth St and Sixth St entrances are located on this level, as well as exits to the areas above Clay St and Leigh St. The upper concourse is the access for all upper level seating and the 300 level is access to the highest seats on either radius of the coliseum. The ring is where the spotlights are operated and is the access to the catwalk.

Replacement Arena
Richmond BizSense reported in June of 2017 that Dominion Energy is in the planning stages on a major redevelopment in the downtown Richmond area that would possibly include a new arena to replace the Coliseum. Recomendations have been made to replace the Coliseum as it needs significant upgrades and repairs to make it more modern. The older layout of the Coliseum has caused many events to by-pass Richmond for the John Paul Jones Arena on the campus of the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia which opened in 2006 and can hold upto about 14,500 depending on the layout for the event.