General Motors Centre
| GM Centre | |
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General Motors Centre
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| Location | 99 Athol Street East Oshawa, Ontario L1H 1J8 |
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| Owner | City of Oshawa |
| Operator | Spectra Venue Management |
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| Construction | |
| Broke ground | June 22, 2005 |
| Opened | November 3, 2006 |
| Construction cost | $45 million ($52.3 million in 2024 dollars[1]) |
| Architect | NORR Limited |
| Project manager | WeirFoulds |
| Structural engineer | IBI Group, Inc. |
| General contractor | Giffels Design-Build Inc. |
| Tenants | |
| Oshawa Generals (OHL) (2007-Present) Oshawa Power (NBL Canada) (2011-2013) Oshawa Machine (CLax) (2012) Durham TurfDogs (CLax) (2012) 2015 Pan American Games (Boxing and Weightlifting) |
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The General Motors Centre, also known as the GM Centre or GMC, is a multi-purpose arena located in downtown Oshawa, Ontario which opened in November 2006. The GM Centre was constructed to replace the Oshawa Civic Auditorium. The main tenants are the Oshawa Generals of the Ontario Hockey League and the Durham TurfDogs of the Canadian Lacrosse League. The facility also features the Oshawa Sports Hall of Fame, Prospects Bar and Grill, an Oshawa Generals retail store, executive seating and special club seats. As construction was nearing completion, the project ran short of money, over budget and resorted to cutting costs. One of the most visible (and surprising) cost saving measures was the installation of surplus rear projection screens (circa 1981, provided free of charge by the local school board) on the drop down scoreboard. Although there have been many petitions presented to the venue operator and the City of Oshawa to replace the screens with modern technology, the screens remain giving the appearance of "cheapness" on such a visibly important portion of an otherwise attractive building.
Contents
Ownership, management and naming rights
The GM Centre is owned by the city of Oshawa. On October 5, 2006, General Motors obtained the naming rights of the arena. The City originally selected Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE) to manage the building but, after disappointing results in the first year and a half of operations, MLSE requested in March 2008 that its contract be terminated.[2] MLSE had been attempting to get into the business of managing facilities beyond those where their sports teams played but decided to withdraw, with Bob Hunter, MLSE's Vice President of venues and entertainment, saying that managing the arena was "no longer a strategic focus for us".[2][3] Global Spectrum assumed control of the operations and management of the arena on June 30, 2008.[3] In early 2015, Global Spectrum quietly replaced the locally staffed ticket call centre with a company in India, with the calls redirected to that company's call centre in that country. The City of Oshawa was questioned regarding the elimination of local employment opportunities (as the construction was billed to taxpayers and supported by people in the area), but there was no official available to reply. Ticket prices and service/convenience charges have not reduced commensurate with the substantially lower wage costs of an overseas call centre, but on the contrary have risen. Global Spectrum has indicated any cost savings expected by outsourcing to 3rd world countries will be utilized to counteract the skyrocketing hydro rates (The Province of Ontario has the highest hydro costs in North America) faced by the venue.
Past events
Elton John x2; Mötley Crüe; KISS; Cirque du Soleil: Dralion, Quidam, Varekai; Tom Jones; INXS; The Tragically Hip x2; Three Days Grace; Sum 41; Alice Cooper x2; Blue Rodeo x3; Bob Dylan; Great Big Sea x2; Johnny Reid x3; Blue Man Group; Trailer Park Boys; Akon; World Rock Symphony Orchestra; Tim Allen; Alan Jackson; Sarah McLachlan; Terri Clark; Selena Gomez; Barenaked Ladies; Hedley x2; Theory of A Deadman & Big Wreck; Marianas Trench; Disney Live! x3; The Wiggles x2; Jeff Dunham x2; Cesar Millan; Riverdance; Lord of the Dance x2; John Mellencamp; John Fogerty; Larry the Cable Guy and Bill Engvall; Marilyn Manson
Sports
Toronto Rock vs. Arizona Sting; ADT Canada vs. Russia; Toronto Maple Leafs "Blue & White" Game; TNA No Surrender - 2008; Toronto Rock vs. Minnesota Swarm; CHL Top Prospects Game; Skate Canada Synchronized Skating Championships; Harlem Globetrotters; Toronto Marlies vs. Hamilton Bulldogs; Old Timers Hockey Challenge; 2011 NHL Rookie Tournament; 2011 Canada vs The Netherlands International Women's Volleyball Match; 2011 BDO Canadian Open
2015 Pan American Games
For the 2015 Pan American Games the facility hosted both weightlifting and boxing events. During the games, the facility was configured to hold roughly 3,000 spectators per session. During Games time the facility was known as the Oshawa Sports Centre.[4]
References
- ↑ 1688 to 1923: Geloso, Vincent, A Price Index for Canada, 1688 to 1850 (December 6, 2016). Afterwards, Canadian inflation numbers based on Statistics Canada tables 18-10-0005-01 (formerly CANSIM 326-0021) Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. and table 18-10-0004-13 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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External links
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Venues of the 2015 Pan American Games
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| New venues | |
| Existing venues | |
| Temporary venues | |
| Venues outside Toronto |
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| Non-competition venues | |
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