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| Title: | The aftermath of the failed Eisenhower Civic Center: Abe Pollin and the Board of Trade spar over a proposed arena in Landover |
| Author: | Pollin, Abe; The Greater Washington Board of Trade |
| Date: | 00/00/1972 |
Document Information
Bibliographic Metadata
| Author: | Pollin, Abe; The Greater Washington Board of Trade |
| Title: | The aftermath of the failed Eisenhower Civic Center: Abe Pollin and the Board of Trade spar over a proposed arena in Landover |
| Date: | 00/00/1972 |
| Archive: | Special Collections, Gelman Library, George Washington University |
| Collection name: | The Greater Washington Board of Trade |
| Document location: | Box 245, folder 14 "The Eisenhower Civic Center Project" |
| Publication location: | |
| Publisher: |
Descriptive Metadata
| Editorial notes: | |
| Description: | When the owner of the Baltimore Bullets was awarded an NHL hockey franchise for Washington in 1972, Abe Pollin promised to move the new hockey team and the Bullets together to the Eisenhower Civic Center at Mt. Vernon Square if it could be ready for the 1974-1975 season. The Washington community was estatic to pick up two new professional sports franchises. When the Eisenhower project stalled, Pollin began work on a privately financed arena in Largo, Maryland, which created a riff between himself and the Washington Board of Trade. On June 8, 1972, the bid of Washington D.C. developer/builder Pollin was selected by the National Hockey League at a meeting in Montreal as one of two new expansion franchises to begin play in the 1974-1975 season. Already the existing owner of the NBA Baltimore Bullets, Pollin wished to consolidate his basketball team with his new hockey team into the same arena in Washington, moving the Bullets from Baltimore to D.C. He agreed to have his new hockey team and the Bullets to play their games in the Eisenhower Civic Center if it could be ready for the 1974-1975 season. Pollin gave a 90 day window beginning on June 8, 1972 to receive such assurances regarding the readiness of the proposed Eisenhower Civic Center. The Eisenhower project stalled and dragged as Congress would not support legislation that appropriated funds to cover all construction costs and any annual operating deficits. Once the Eisenhower legislation stalled and died a slow death in Congress, Pollin announced his plans for a 17,500 seat Beltway arena in Largo that would open for the 1974-1975. A July 31, 1972 press release announced the forthcoming home of the Bullets, the yet unnamed hockey team, and big-ticket concert events, filling a need in metro Washington for a large indoor arena. These documents tell the story of what happened after this press release. Despite the troubled Eisenhower Center, the Washington Board of Trade hoped the two teams would still find a downtown home with a privately financed arena at Union Station. The first document is a pointed and direct letter from Board president John W. Stadtler to Pollin regarding his public statement on moving to Largo. An equally pointed letter from Pollin's lawyer sent the very next day responds. Next, a press release from Pollin on the same day states and clarifies his position on a Largo arena. The remaining documents provide a small narrative on the arena that would become the Capital Centre, serving the metro D.C. area from December 2, 1973 until it was imploded on December 15, 2002, as it was made obsolete by the Verizon Center in downtown Washington. |
| Subjects: | The Greater Washington Board of Trade;; The Eisenhower Civic Center;; Abe Pollin;; Baltimore Bullets;; Washington Bullets;; NBA Basketball;; NHL Hockey;; Washington Capitals;; Landover, Maryland;; Capital Centre;; sports arena |
Technical Metadata
| Date scanned: | 3/13/2006 |
| Person scanning: | Craig Clarke |
| Date converted: | 3/13/2006 |
| Person converting: | Craig Clarke |
| Scanner used: | Fujitsu FI-4220C |
| OCR program: | PixEdit 7 Rev. 7.3.6 |
| Technical notes: |