Grand Rapids Griffins
Rink: Van Andel Arena
Capacity: 10,834
Built: 1996
League: AHL
City: Grand Rapids, Michigan
Home Of: Grand Rapids Griffins
Games Attended: 1
Only Game: November 13, 2009 vs Milwaukee
Unique Arena: #27
AHL Arena: #2
The Van Andel Arena is a very nice red brick building with a brilliant all glass front facade that sits in the middle of downtown Grand Rapids, a stone’s throw from US 131. It was built in the mid 90s, but from the outside feels slightly newer than that, so kudos for staying ahead of the trends. Upon entry into the glass lobby, you are taken up escalators to the lower bowl concourse. There is also a large team store that can be accessed from the outside of the building along the Ottawa St side of it.
Van Andel Arena is set up in a U shape, with two bowls of seating. Unfortunately, my biggest complaint is that the seating in the lower bowl is far too shallow, and even sitting a handful of rows up feels like you’re far away from the ice surface, which makes it hard to see through the people in front of you. The upper bowl is much steeper, however, and should I ever go to another game here it’s where I plan on sitting.
The top of the U as you can see in the photo below does have some seating down low, but otherwise is just a giant wall. It’s an odd look, and you would think they could build some suites into it more so than they already have, or something else instead of a giant grey wall. The atmosphere however (at least at the game I attended) is fantastic, and a real saving grace from what I otherwise felt was a dull building. These are all from memories of a game I attended over 15 years ago, so should I get back there I will probably give a more comprehensive review and take much better pictures.
