Alerus Center
The Alerus Center is an indoor arena and convention center in the north central United States, located in Grand Forks, North Dakota. The facility is owned and operated by the city of Grand Forks and opened on February 10, 2001.
Alerus Center in 2006 | |
| Former names | Aurora Events Center (pre-construction) |
|---|---|
| Address | 1200 S. 42nd Street |
| Location | Grand Forks, North Dakota, U.S. |
| Coordinates | 47.911°N 97.091°W |
| Owner | City of Grand Forks |
| Capacity | 21,000 Configurations
|
| Field size | Overall: 447,000 square feet (41,500 m2) Ballroom: 26,000 square feet (2,400 m2) Arena floor dimensions: 415 feet (126 m) north to south 240 feet (73 m) east to west |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | July 15, 1998 |
| Opened | February 10, 2001 |
| Construction cost | $80 million ($150 million in 2023) |
| Architect | Ellerbe Becket JLG Architects Schoen & Associates |
| Structural engineer | Simpson Gumpertz & Heger, Inc. |
| Services engineer | Obermiller Nelson Engineering, Inc. |
| General contractor | Mortenson Construction |
| Tenants | |
| North Dakota Fighting Hawks football (NCAA) (2001–present) | |
The arena's major tenant is the University of North Dakota football team, and also hosts many large concerts, sporting events, and trade shows. The seating capacity for football is 12,283, and up to 21,000 for other events. Located southwest of the UND campus, it is just east of Interstate 29 and south of its exit 140, the junction with state highway 297.
The convention center section of the facility includes a 26,000-square-foot (2,400 m2) ballroom and twelve meeting rooms. The convention center is used for conferences, seminars, banquets, parties, and smaller concerts. Directly adjacent to the Alerus Center is a large hotel and waterpark complex called the Canad Inns Destination Center.
Alerus Center is named after a local financial institution, Alerus Financial, which purchased the building's naming rights. Prior to opening, the facility had been referred to as the Aurora Events Center. Its approximate elevation at street level is 835 feet (255 m) above sea level.