The interior of the arena, during an ice hockey game
The Toyota Center is an indoor arena located at 1510 Polk Street in Downtown Houston, Texas.
Named after the Japanese automobile manufacturer Toyota, the Toyota Center houses two teams: The Houston of the NBA and The Houston of the AHL.
History[]
In 2002, the Houston sports teams pressured the city for a new arena to be built to replace the Compaq Center (Houston), formerly known as the Summit. As a result, the Toyota Center was built and has since become their new home.
The Toyota Center can seat 18,300 for Basketball, 17,800 for Hockey, and up to 19,000 for concerts. It has 2,900 club seats and 103 luxury suites. There are over 10,000 parking spaces within a few blocks of the facility, including the 2,500-space Toyota Tundra garage connected to the arena via private skybridge.
The Toyota Center was the winner of the Allen Award for Civic Enhancement by Central Houston in 2003, the "Rookie of the Year" award by the Harlem Globetrotters in 2004 and was a finalist for Pollstar Magazine’s "Best New Concert Venue" award. Attendance at events during the facility's first year exceeded 1.5 million people.
Events[]
The first event after the arena's opening ceremony was a Fleetwood Mac concert on October 6, 2003. The first Houston game at the Toyota Center was against the Denver Nuggets on October 30, 2003.
