Minnesota's Met Center Demolished 30 Years Ago Today

BLOOMINGTON (WJON News)—Minnesota's famed Metropolitan Sports Center in Bloomington was demolished 30 years ago.

The Minnesota Historical Society says the first bombing attempt on December 13th, 1994, with a detonator button pressed by Michael Franson, was largely unsuccessful, with much of the building still standing ten minutes after the scheduled implosion.

Eventually, the structure is brought down with bulldozers and other heavy equipment.

The Metropolitan Sports Center, or Met Center, was built to house the Minnesota North Stars. It was adjacent to the Metropolitan Stadium the home of the Vikings and the Twins.

According to the Minnesota Historical Society archives, when the North Stars were announced as an NHL team in February of 1966, there was a condition that they build a new arena that could hold at least 12,500 spectators. Construction started in October of 1966.

On October 21st, 1967 the North Stars played their home opener against the California Golden Seals.

The Met Center was considered one of the best NHL arenas at the time. Its signature multi-colored seats were innovative.

Besides the NHL games, the venue was used for a number of events. Concerts held at the Met Center included shows by Elvis Presley, Led Zeppelin, Fleetwood Mac, and Prince. The first ever concert was on December 16th, 1967 featuring Sergio Mendez. The last concert was on January 24th, 1992 with Frank Sinatra. The most tickets sold for a concert there was for a Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton show in April of 1986. There were nearly 18,000 people there for that collaboration.

Norm Green bought the North Stars in 1990. In March of 1993 he announced he was moving the team to Dallas. The last North Stars game at the Met was on April 13th, 1993.