Arena Info
The U.S. Cellular Center is the most well known entertainment venue in Eastern Iowa. The facility is on the leading edge of bringing culturally rich, highly entertaining and visually stimulating events to the surrounding population.
The U.S. Cellular Center and Paramount Theatre are owned by the City of Cedar Rapids and managed by VenuWorks, formerly Compass Facility Management. These two facilities are overseen by the Five Seasons Facilities Commission. Commission meetings are held every month and are open to the public. For more information regarding meeting times, please call 319-398-5211. We welcome any comments from the public. Please e-mail Angie Hansen at a.hansen@uscellularcenter.com or call her at 319-398-5211.
Facility Features
- Accessible from interstates 80 & 380 and Iowa highways 30 & 151
- Ten minutes from the airport with service from eight carriers
- Ticketmaster affiliate
- All events assigned an experienced event coordinator
- Full service in-house advertising agency
- Group sales department
- On-site catering and food service
- Non-smoking facility
Location
U.S. Cellular Center
370 First Ave. NE
Cedar Rapids, IA. 52401
Arena History
The U.S. Cellular Center opened as the Five Seasons Center on January 25, 1979. The Center was one portion of a three-part downtown project built in the late 1970's that included the Crowne Plaza Five Seasons Hotel and Five Seasons Parkade. The project was funded through a newly created downtown TIF (tax-incremental finance) district and a bond issue.
In 1988, the City of Cedar Rapids chose to contract with a private management firm, Ogden Entertainment Services to manage the Center and the Paramount Theatre. Ogden was given the responsibility to run both facilities with an annual allocation of $300,000 from the hotel/motel tax fund for operating costs. Today, VenuWorks, formerly Compass Facility Management, a private management firm in Ames, IA, manages the Center and Theatre. VenuWorks took over management in June 1999 after a lengthy bid process that attracted six potential management firms. Since taking over the management, VenuWorks has decreased the annual operating stipend to $150,000 from the hotel/motel tax fund. This decrease on the operating side has allowed the facilities' capital funding from the hotel/motel tax fund to grow to $450,000 annually.
The U.S. Cellular Center has never been funded by Cedar Rapids' property taxes. Most years, the facility operates with a positive cash balance and uses any excess funds from the operating allocation to assist with capital funding. The facility is over 20 years old and has yet to undergo a major renovation due to the rigorous care of the operations staff.
Built as the premier entertainment and convention facility in Eastern Iowa, the U.S. Cellular Center continues to host 170-190 event days a year including concerts, family shows, conventions, corporate meetings, sporting events, ice shows, rodeos, circuses and high school events. The facility is on the leading edge of bringing culturally rich, highly entertaining and visually stimulating events to the surrounding population.
Nestled in the densely populated corridor of Eastern Iowa, the U.S. Cellular Center draws event attendees from a population base of more than 1,000,000 people. The center of this population group is within an hour and a half drive from Cedar Rapids. Event programming is carefully planned to appeal to a gamut of progressive tastes and traditional interests.
Over the years, the Center has hosted many concerts including KISS, Prince, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Amy Grant, Diana Ross, Pantera, Brooks & Dunn, Styx, AC/DC, Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, Diamond Rio, Martina McBride, Gaither Homecoming, Barry Manilow, Chicago, Bon Jovi, Larry the Cable Guy, Beach Boys, Bob Dylan, Rodney Carrington, Linkin Park, Toby Keith, Cher, Green Day and Nickelback.
In July 2000, the City of Cedar Rapids entered into an advertising partnership with U.S. Cellular to rename the Center. The Center receives an annual payment of $125,000 over five years plus marketing support through U.S. Cellular monthly bills and retail centers. In return, the facility was renamed the U.S. Cellular Center.
As the U.S. Cellular Center continues to work on bringing in diverse events, you can help. Join the USCC/PT Focus Group by contacting Sarah LaGrange at s.lagrange@uscellularcenter.com. Focus group members receive e-mails on potential events and give feedback on these events. For more information on the USCC/PT Focus Group, click on Patron Services page.
Administrative Officers
Scott Schoenike
Executive Director
s.schoenike@uscellularcenter.com
Brian Cari
General Manager of Catering and Concessions
Sodexho
b.cari@uscellularcenter.com