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CHL's Austin Ice Bats To Get New Home in 06-07

February 7, 2005 - Central Hockey League (CHL) News Release


The Austin Ice Bats will relocate to a new facility in Cedar Park, Texas in fall of 2006 following a Saturday vote by area residents to approve a 30.8 million bond issue to build a multi-purpose events center in the Austin suburb. The 2005-2006 season will be the Ice Bats' tenth and final in their current venue, the Travis County Exposition Center, home of the club since their inception in 1996. Cedar Park is the fourth fastest growing city in the nation, population 10-50,000, according to the United States Bureau of the Census, and is located just 17 miles from the heart of downtown Austin, the State Capital of Texas.

The facility will be a partnership between the City of Cedar Park and Global Entertainment Corporation, parent company of the CHL. Another Global Entertainment subsidiary, International Coliseums Company, will oversee final design and construction of the venue, expected to seat approximately 6,000 for ice hockey and over 7,000 for additional events such as trade shows, graduation ceremonies, concerts and other civic functions.

"We obviously are very pleased to see the project receive approval from the residents of Cedar Park, and congratulate the dedicated efforts of city leadership, the Austin Ice Bats, and International Coliseums Company in bringing this project to reality," said CHL President Brad Treliving. "The new facility will become a significant addition to the rapidly growing infrastructure of Cedar Park, and provide an outstanding new home for the Austin Ice Bats."

"We want to thank the citizens of Cedar Park for welcoming us to their city," said Ice Bats President Jeff Buch. "We are looking forward to the Fall of 2006, when we begin play in a new state-of-the-art facility." "We especially want to thank all of the volunteers, including some of our season ticket holders, who worked so tirelessly to make the events center a reality," Buch said. "Their efforts enabled voters to make an informed decision, and we hope they'll take enormous pride in a great accomplishment for Cedar Park and the entire Austin area. We're grateful for their efforts, as well as those of past and current City Council members in Cedar Park and City staff. We also want to acknowledge and thank everyone associated with Travis County and the Expo Center," Buch said. "They have been tremendous landlords and without their efforts, there would not be hockey in Austin."

"The voters of Cedar Park have spoken, and have decided to embark on this new and exciting endeavor," said Cedar Park Mayor Bob Antle. "We look forward to the process of building the facility over the next two years, and all the exciting events to follow."

The Ice Bats will join several other CHL franchises in recently completed new venues, including the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs (CenturyTel Center, 2000), Memphis RiverKings (DeSoto Civic Center, 2000), Laredo Bucks (Laredo Entertainment Center, 2002), Oklahoma City Blazers (Ford Center, 2002), Colorado Eagles (Budweiser Events Center, 2003), Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees (Dodge Arena, 2003), and Corpus Christi Rayz (AmericanBank Center, 2004). A soon to-be-named 05-06 CHL expansion club in Youngstown, Ohio will begin play this fall in the now under construction Youngstown Convocation Center.



Central Hockey League Stories from February 7, 2005


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.


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