Allen County War Memorial Coliseum — Attraction in Fort Wayne

I've been attending Fort Wayne Komets hockey games at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum since I was 2 or 3 years old, so I'm quite familiar with it. The seating is good, particularly for sporting events there's not really a bad view, though of course, the closer you get, the better it will be. Just be sure to follow safety regulations; taking a puck to the body is NOT a good experience.

Parking is usually not an issue as the lot is large and the entrances are reasonable. As of the 2018-2019 year, they do not accept any form of payment except for cash for parking. Not a problem if you're expecting that, but it has definitely caught people by surprise. Leaving, though, can be a problem; depending on the level of concern and effort (and honestly even how many of them show up) of the parking lot staff and police, it can take a long time to get out after an event. And, while not directly the Coliseum's fault, belligerent drunks trying to leave have been a very real issue. Best idea: get to your car and wait a few minutes for things to clear out and it'll be fine.

I've also attended many concerts here, and while usually traveling music acts run their own sound equipment, the Coliseum has the space and electronic hookups to make everything work and sound amazing. At hockey games, at least, the music is very hit or miss; some games it's spot on, from lows to highs, with respectable mid-range. Other times, the bass is almost totally scooped and the highs are painful. This appears to depend on the mood of whoever runs the sound board, as there's no real pattern to it otherwise. The Public Announcer, though, is always well-spoken and clear.

The video board in the main arena was updated in the past year and looks fantastic. However, it appears the cameras that feed to it are not the same quality as the resolution on the screen. This doesn't result in a bad picture, but it is noticeable. The video installations around the arena are top notch also, though, and the feeds to them are processed from some manner of digital system instead of passing from a camera and therefore look wonderful.

The concessions are run by contractors and volunteers, so the service can vary (usually based on how busy it is) but the prices are always the same: pretty high. There are some deals, though; a plate of nachos is a fair price, and the food court-style restaurants that line the main arena are absolutely worth the premium you pay.

Overall, if you're thinking of attending a sporting event, concert, or special event at the ACWMC, it's absolutely worth checking out. I've had more wonderful experiences here than I can even shake a stick at and think you'll have a...

While attending a volleyball tournament, all cars were parked normally even though the snow had fallen in the parking lot. When we returned to our cars after the afternoon session, we were in the middle of 3 deep parking. We returned to volleyball and they announced for an hour (2 other people before us as well) until we realized there was a hockey game in the other part of the facility. The head of security nor anyone else would announce during the hockey game to move vehicles. The security management blamed volleyball even though we had been announcing for an hour in our area. I personally was here 1st thing this morning and the lot was halfway plowed starting closest to the building when I arrived which was fantastic. All parked normally (which is the problem area currently). I also had teams in the afternoon session and were the last ones in for volleyball. Parking was fine until the Komets game. We waited 2 HOURS to get out because they would not announce to move the illegally parked vehicles. The volleyball tournament was over yet over 30 cars of volleyball people were trapped in 3 way blocked in parking. A lady near us had a 6 hour drive home and she waited almost 2 1/2 hours to get her car out. 2HOURS and you can’t make a simple announcement?! Obviously no one working knew what was doing on when the hockey fans were parking and that’s the security’s fault. There were 4 rows of 3 parking and even in preferred parking! You don’t want to inconvenience your hockey fans yet here 30 of us are and more than likely more since a parent probably drove a player. Get it together! Also, I was told by a worker “oh it wouldn’t be our hockey people because most of them are season ticket holders…..” one car blocking my friend in had a...

I went to a rock concert here last night. We drove 2 hours from the south side in excitement to see this place and the bands. We got there and we were on our way to ground level when they stopped us and told us floor capacity of 1,500 people is full. Keep in mind everyone payed the same price for a regular general admission ticket unless u payed for vip which sat on a stage all the way in the back. We then walked up and went to the stands and sat in a pretty good seat for the first band that played. After they got done we left to see what was up with the floor policy since the floor could easily fit 300 more people. They did not have time to deal with our questions so we went back up to find our seats taken and the stands pretty full. We tried going down the steps and standing at the wall of the bleachers like other people were doing and were told to go find a seat. We walked back up and left that area because it was crowded and we couldn’t look for open seats. We went to another section and were looking for seats when we were approached and told we need to find a seat again. We ended up just sitting at the top for the rest of the openers and headliner. In conclusion it was very strict for a rock concert. Nowhere on any ticket i bought said anything about the floor capacity. 70% of the staff were really nice. I believe floor tickets should be sold at a higher price than stands. It sucked knowing i payed as much as the people at the front row on the floor while I’m at the top standing still. Great show. Great sound quality. Overall since its so far probably wont return unless i know this is fixed. I spent $150 in tickets and a 3/4 a tank of gas and a 2 hour drive to sit at the top...