It is remarkable how quickly people come to take something for granted. Within weeks to months, even the things that thrilled one at first, such as a new car or a new job, lose their thrill as they become the new normal. One might even start to have trouble remembering when the thing entered one’s life, and may feel as though it has always been there. This phenomenon, I believe, is the biggest hurdle we face in studying and sharing local history. It is easy to take interest in the history of, say, ancient Egypt because it is so different from one’s modern-day life that learning about it gives one the thrill of novelty. It is more difficult to take interest in the history of one’s own neighborhood, because it feels so mundane and ever-present. Though most start life naturally curious, after a point, curiosity becomes a skill that must be intentionally honed and maintained.
However, it is also possible for curiosity to be sparked in someone, even about the things they take for granted. At least, this was my own experience when, while looking through a large, recent donation from the Bossier City Council, I stumbled upon a plaque commemorating the ceremony of the “Bossier City Multipurpose Arena,” now known as the Brookshire Grocery Arena. I moved to Northwest Louisiana in 1999; I cannot remember a time that the arena has not been there. I don’t recall ever thinking about its age, but if you had asked me, I would have guessed it was around fifty years old, though, internally, I would have felt that it’s always been there, serving as a venue, a landmark, and a source of much stress for those caught in pre- or post-event traffic. I was rather taken aback when I looked at the plaque, and saw the year 1999, meaning the arena is several years younger than I am. I was also surprised to see Bossier City Multipurpose Arena. I had believed it only had three names, CenturyTel Center, CenturyLink Center, and the present Brookshire Grocery Arena. That led me to more questions, such as “So when was it opened?”, and “Who decided to build it?”, and “How many names have they given that thing?” “Why on Earth have they changed it so much?”
Bossier City received a significant economic windfall in the early 1990s, thanks in large part to the debut of the riverboat casinos. Talk soon turned to more city development, with a potential entertainment district and amphitheater being discussed as early as 1994. Such ideas originally centered around downtown Bossier, but in February of 1998, the city council revealed development plans for south Bossier, including a 14,000-seat arena to be built on Arthur Ray Teague Parkway, on a site that had once been part of Mrs. Paulina Pickett’s Chalk Level Plantation.
Despite controversy, particularly over the chosen site, the groundbreaking ceremony for the Bossier City Multipurpose Arena (called simply “The Bossier City Arena” in other sources) commenced on March 30, 1999, with over 150 people venturing out into “chilly temperatures and a light rain” to witness city officials plunge spades into “a sea of mud,” as the Bossier-Press Tribune reported. On July 20, 2000, Mayor George Dement announced that CenturyTel, Inc. (a Monroe-based telecommunications company, now known as Lumen Technologies, Inc.) had agreed to sponsor the arena, and had paid over $5 million - approximately 1/12 of the arena’s construction cost - to have the arena renamed the CenturyTel Center. It opened with a public walk-through on October 28, 2000, with an estimated 400 people participating. It was renamed the CenturyLink Center in 2011, two years after CenturyTel, Inc. itself had been renamed CenturyLink. CenturyLink would continue to pay Bossier City for the arena’s naming rights until 2021, after which a new contract was signed with Brookshire Grocery Group of Tyler, Texas.
Whatever its name, the arena has more than lived up to its original title of “multipurpose arena.” It hosted its first concert (REO Speedwagon & Styx) on November 21, 2000, and since then, it has been a venue for concerts, tournaments, circuses, graduations, rodeos, and more, and has served as the home of three sports teams, including the recently-created Louisiana Rouxgaroux. It has hosted more than 7 million visitors from all 50 states, and accounts for the vast majority of ticket sales in the Ark-La-Tex. As of 2025, its “estimated economic impact since opening” was around $500 million. Whether you love or hate it, there is no denying that this building has irrevocably altered Bossier Parish.
Yet, despite that enormous impact, I hadn’t thought about the arena until I saw the plaque. This, I believe, is why the preservation and presentation of historical artifacts is so important, particularly for local history. Historical information is easier to access than ever, thanks to archives, museums, and Internet databases. However, all other information (and misinformation) is also easier to access than ever, and with so many competing distractions, it’s easy for history to be overlooked. Objects can help cut through the noise, as they can spark curiosity and make the abstract information feel more “real.” In a swirling sea of information, artifacts can be lighthouses, guiding us towards true knowledge.
If you have any information relating to the history of Bossier City and Bossier Parish, the History Center may be interested in adding the material to its research collection. Call or visit us to learn more. We are open Monday - Friday 9-6, and Saturday by appointment. Our phone number is (318) 746-7717 and our email is history-center@bossierlibrary.org. We can also be found online at https://www.facebook.com/BPLHistoryCenter/ and http://bpl-hc.blogspot.com/
Image: Plaque from the 1999 groundbreaking for the Bossier
Article by: Jaylie Rester
No comments:
Post a Comment