Acrisure Arena officially opens its doors with a ribbon-cutting ceremony

Acrisure Arena hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Wednesday with the Doobie Brothers Wednesday morning.

"This dream started five years ago and it’s very rewarding to finally share this building with the Valley community. Acrisure Arena represents Oak View Group’s sixth arena and I’d like to thank all of our partners for believing in our community, project, and vision, as well as our team for a job well done,” said Tim Leiweke, CEO of the Oak View Group, the developer behind the arena.

Several community leaders gathered to celebrate the milestone.

“For Tim and me, this just isn’t just another building because we’re proud residents of Coachella Valley, and this wouldn’t have happened had we not experienced life here in the Valley and what it all means to the community. Similar sized markets across the country simply don’t have opportunities like Palm Springs and we are proud to bring this state-of-the-art venue to fans in the Coachella Valley,” said Irving Azoff, co-founder of OVG.

"Such a glorious, beautiful place, but there wasn't a place that we could all come and celebrate. Celebrate the Doobie Brothers celebrate the music or the content of comedy tonight and celebrate a team," added Tod Leiweke, CEO of the Seattle Kraken, the affiliate of the Coachella Valley Firebirds.

The ceremony featured a flyover by the Palm Springs Air Museum. Following the ceremony, the arena's ice plex officially opened to the public.

Making it possible for the valley community to take part in ice sports.

The very first show at Acrisure Arena will be tonight! Comedy legends Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle will perform with the show kicking off at 7:30 p.m.

Opening week for the arena will also include concerts by the Doobie Brothers and Grupo Firme, as well as a fan fest ahead of the Coachella Valley Firebirds first home game on Sunday.

The community will be able to watch games via LIVE broadcast, including their desert debut on Sunday, Dec. 18 at Acrisure Arena. KESQ News Channel 3's group of stations will be your go-to place to watch Firebirds games on television.

Coachella Valley Firebirds Broadcast Schedule

Check Out: News Channel 3 takes an in-depth look at traffic at the new Acrisure Arena

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