Scheels Arena (formerly called The Urban Plains Center, or UPC) is a multi-purpose venue located in Fargo, North Dakota. It is part of the Sanford Health Athletic Park which comprises the arena, the Family Wellness Center (a partnership between Sanford Health and the YMCA), and the Sanford POWER Athletic Center. There are plans to add four additional ice sheets.
History
The Urban Plains Center was constructed and opened in 2008. Before opening, the concrete foundation of the Arena was vandalized causing roughly $500,000 worth of damage and leading to 3 criminal arrests.[6] It was renamed in 2010 after Scheels All Sports purchased the naming rights. The arena seats up to 6,000 for concerts, over 5,000 for ice hockey, and it holds 40 suites and 300 club seats. It features an NHL-sized ice sheet. The main tenant of the arena is the Fargo Force, who play in the United States Hockey League.
The North Dakota State Bison men's basketball team played their home games at Scheels Arena for the 2014–15 and 2015–16 seasons while their previous arena, the Bison Sports Arena, was being remodeled.[7]
In February 2016 the Arena hosted the funeral of slain Fargo Police Officer Jason David Moszer.[8] An estimated 3,600 people were in attendance with an estimated 2,800 being law enforcement.[9]
In June 2018 President Donald Trump held a rally at the Scheels Arena where he campaigned on behalf of Kevin Cramer and Kelly Armstrong.[10] Trump spoke to an arena filled to capacity (6000 people) with supporters and protesters outside of the arena.[11]
