Editing Richfield Coliseum (section)

==History==
The arena, which opened in 1974, replaced the [[Cleveland Arena]], which had 12,500+ boxing capacity, 10,000+ otherwise. The new arena seated 20,273 for basketball and 18,544 for hockey, and was one of the first [[list of indoor arenas|indoor arenas]] to contain [[luxury box]]es. Cavaliers founder [[Nick Mileti]] was the driving force behind the Coliseum's construction, believing that its location in northern Summit County south of Cleveland near the confluence of the [[Ohio Turnpike]] and [[Interstate 77|Interstates 77]] and [[Interstate 271|271]] was ideally suited given the growth of [[urban sprawl]]. 

The Coliseum was built in Richfield to draw fans from both of [[Northeast Ohio]]'s major cities, as nearly five million Ohioans lived within less than an hour's drive (in good weather) from the Coliseum. While the arena's location hindered attendance somewhat, the Cavaliers' average attendance was over 18,000 per game each of the last two seasons at the Coliseum. In a 2012 interview with [[ESPN]]'s [[Bill Simmons]], basketball great [[Larry Bird]] said that it was his favorite arena to play in. The Coliseum was the site of Bird's final game in the NBA.

The Force also drew well at Richfield: 20,174 attended when Cleveland took on [[Minnesota Strikers|Minnesota]] on April 6, 1986, still the largest regular-season crowd (and the third-largest overall) ever to see an indoor soccer match in the US.<ref>[http://www.kenn.com/the_blog/?page_id=7435 Biggest indoor soccer crowds (from Kenn.com)]</ref>

The [[World Wrestling Federation]] also promoted several notable [[pay-per-view]] shows at the arena, including ''[[Saturday Night's Main Event VII]]'' (taped September 13, 1986); [[Survivor Series (1987)]]; [[Survivor Series (1988)]]; and [[Survivor Series (1992)]]

===Attendance hindrances===
Though a large arena at the time of construction, it had only one [[concourse]] for both levels, which made for very cramped conditions when attendance was anywhere close to capacity. The Coliseum's real drawback was that the revenue-producing luxury suites were at the uppermost level and, as such, were the worst seats in the house. This situation was rectified at Gund Arena, where the suites were much closer to the playing area.

Also hurting attendance was the arena's location at the interchange of Interstate 271 and [[Ohio State Route 303]], which was a rural, two-lane highway outside of Richfield. The rural location made the Coliseum inaccessible to anyone without an automobile, and as the only true access to the arena was directly at the interchange, traffic became an issue with every Coliseum event, especially when attendance was anywhere near capacity. [[Lake-effect snow]] from [[Lake Erie]] provided another obstacle to drivers during the winter months.

===Demolition and environmental remediation===
The Coliseum's fate was sealed in 1990, when voters in [[Cuyahoga County]] approved a new [[sin tax]] to fund the [[Gateway Sports and Entertainment Complex]], which included Gund Arena. The Cavaliers moved to Gund Arena at the beginning of the 1994–95 season.

In 1997, the hardwood floor was sold to Grace Christian School of [[Staunton, Virginia]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Sladek|first=Jon|date=October 29, 2014|title=Remnants of Richfield|url=https://www.clevescene.com/news/remnants-of-richfield-the-untold-story-of-how-the-cavs-floor-from-the-richfield-coliseum-ended-up-at-a-small-school-in-virginia-4401650|newspaper=[[Cleveland Scene]]|location=Cleveland, Ohio}}</ref>

After being vacant for five years, the arena was torn down in 1999, between March 30<ref>{{cite news |first=Brian E.|last=Albrecht|title=Death of the Palace on the Prairie|url=http://infoweb.newsbank.com/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_action=doc&p_topdoc=1&p_docnum=1&p_sort=YMD_date:D&p_product=NewsBank&p_text_direct-0=document_id=(%200F80D2E9484E9C62%20)&p_docid=0F80D2E9484E9C62&p_theme=aggregated5&p_queryname=0F80D2E9484E9C62&f_openurl=yes&p_nbid=G4BF4BYBMTIyMDk5Njg0My42NzYxNTM6MToxMjoxOTguMzAuMjI4LjA&&p_multi=CPDB|newspaper=[[The Plain Dealer]]|location=Cleveland|date=March 30, 1999|access-date=September 9, 2008}}</ref> and May 21,<ref>{{cite news |title=Ruins of the Coliseum|url=http://infoweb.newsbank.com/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_action=doc&p_topdoc=1&p_docnum=1&p_sort=YMD_date:D&p_product=NewsBank&p_text_direct-0=document_id=(%200F80D3D76789D515%20)&p_docid=0F80D3D76789D515&p_theme=aggregated5&p_queryname=0F80D3D76789D515&f_openurl=yes&p_nbid=J52V52JIMTIyMDk5NjEzMi45NjY2NTI6MToxMjoxOTguMzAuMjI4LjA&&p_multi=CPDB|newspaper=[[The Plain Dealer]]|location=Cleveland|date=May 22, 1999|access-date=September 9, 2008}}</ref> and the arena footprint and surrounding parking areas were allowed to be returned to woodland as part of the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area, now [[Cuyahoga Valley National Park]].<ref>{{cite news |first=Lee|last=Chilcote|title=The Rise and Fall of Richfield Coliseum|url=http://www.tpl.org/publications/land-and-people-magazine/archive/landpeople-fall-1999/the-rise-and-fall-of-richfield.html|work=Land & People|publisher=[[The Trust for Public Land]]|date=November 1, 1999|access-date=April 12, 2012}}</ref> Two years later it was noted that the site appeared to have no trace of the former building,<ref>{{cite news |first=Brian E.|last=Albrecht|title=Greening of the Coliseum|url=http://infoweb.newsbank.com/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_action=doc&p_topdoc=1&p_docnum=1&p_sort=YMD_date:D&p_product=NewsBank&p_text_direct-0=document_id=(%200F2D6427477DE771%20)&p_docid=0F2D6427477DE771&p_theme=aggregated5&p_queryname=0F2D6427477DE771&f_openurl=yes&p_nbid=X5FF5FJVMTIyMDk5NjEyNy45NTc5MjM6MToxMjoxOTguMzAuMjI4LjA&&p_multi=CPDB|newspaper=The Plain Dealer|location=Cleveland|date=June 25, 2001|access-date=September 9, 2008}}</ref> although a widened section of [[Ohio State Route 303|Route 303]], as well as the remains of the parking lot entrance, reveal its location.<!-- Ambiguous: 303's widening is also to accommodate the I-271 interchange -->

The site is now a grassy meadow and has become an important area for wildlife. Birds such as the [[Eastern meadowlark]], [[bobolink]], and various [[American sparrow|sparrow]]s now inhabit the area. This has caused the site to become popular with local birders.<ref>{{cite news |first=James F.|last=McCarty|title=Coliseum Grasslands Offer Intimate Views of Some of the Most-threatened Bird Species: Aerial View|url=http://www.cleveland.com/neobirding/index.ssf/2012/06/cvnps_coliseum_grasslands_prov.html|newspaper=[[The Plain Dealer]]|location=Cleveland|date=June 5, 2012|access-date=June 10, 2012}}</ref><ref>"[http://www.nps.gov/cuva/historyculture/former-coliseum-property.htm Former Coliseum Property]". Cuyahoga Valley National Park website ([[National Park Service]]). Retrieved June 10, 2012.</ref>

===Seating capacity===
The [[seating capacity]] for basketball was:<ref>{{cite web |title=2014–15 Cleveland Cavaliers Media Guide|publisher=National Basketball Association}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! style="{{NBA color cell|Cleveland Cavaliers}}"|Years
! style="{{NBA color cell|Cleveland Cavaliers}}"|Capacity
|-
! style="{{NBA color cell2|Cleveland Cavaliers}}"|1974–1988
| {{center|20,900}} 
|-
! style="{{NBA color cell2|Cleveland Cavaliers}}"|1988–1994
| {{center|20,273}} 
|}