Ode to the Coliseum

The New Haven Coliseum, built in 1972, is that weird, huge building that you always see in New Haven by the intersection of I-95 and I-91. You really can't miss it if you're going to the train station, or even just driving through. It is a sports arena, covered by three or four levels of a huge parking garage. Or, it was.

According to the Save the New Haven Coliseum website, in addition to being the former home of the minor-league-arena-football New Haven Ninja's (yes, within arena football, there is a minor league), the Coliseum has been the site of shows by Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, Garth Brooks and Van Halen.

Several years ago the city decided it was time to take down the Coliseum; it was a relic of the 1970's that didn't belong in the city anymore. Some citizens organized to save it, though not successfully. After the city decided to take it down, they didn't have enough money to do so. So it's just been standing there the last few years.

Now they're finally taking it down. The asbestos was removed, and then they tore apart the insides. This is what it looked like the other week, with one side of the stands gone but the other still there, the innards of the goliath visible to all who passed by:





Once they finish the insides, the parking level will be all that's left, standing high above the ground in what's sure to be an odd sight. Then at some point, probably a Sunday in January, it will be imploded.

I never made it inside the Coliseum, and now I regret it. It sounds like it was the site of many a good time.