Rabobank Arena, Bakersfield, California

Rabobank Arena, formerly known as Bakersfield Centennial Garden, is located in Bakersfield, California. The center was built in 1998 by the city of Bakersfield to house hockey, basketball, and arena football. The renaming of the arena occurred in 2005, when the naming rights were sold to the Dutch cooperative bank. The bank sponsors cycling and field hockey teams. The contract for the name was $2.5 million and will last until 2015.

The arena is the home for the Bakersfield Condors and ECHL team. It is also home to the California State University team and Bakersfield Roadrunners NCAA basketball division. The arena has also had the Bakersfield Jam NBA development league team on site for the 2009- 2010 season.

In 2007 the AF2, Bakersfield Blitz arena Football team played their last game at the arena. They had to close down due to financial difficulties. The women's team was also using Rabobank Arena; however, they opted to go closer to home with the Icardo Center on campus. The arena provides a home for a high school wrestling team. Rabobank Arena will be hosting the 2010 CIF State Basketball Championships.

Depending on the type of entertainment the center can hold between 9,333 to 10,400 people. Concerts tend to hold the most individuals based on the stage setup. Center and end stage shows offer the most seating. Rabobank's arena floor is 17,000 square feet. The facility is an exhibit home for the Bob Elias Kern County Hall of Fame. The hall of fame honors numerous athletes and those associated with athletics from Bakersfield and Kern counties. Buck Owens, a country music legend is also honored with a western display.

Rabobank is more than just an arena. It is a full entertainment center with a 17,840 square foot exhibit hall, 3,000 seat theater, and 7,830 stage house. The stage house is called the Rabobank Theater and Convention Center. It originally opened in 1962 under the name Bakersfield Civic Auditorium. However, in the 1980's it was renamed.

Both Rabobank Arena and the adjoining convention center have numerous different acts throughout the year. For example Cirque Dreams, Linda Ronstad, Celtic Woman, Disney Live, and the 34th World Championship Ice Racing series are a few shows that will be at the arena for the end of 2009. 2010 will bring more entertainment with the Wedding Singer, Nearly Neil and the Solitary Band, plenty of sports teams, and Grand Night for Music.

Tickets are available through Ticketmaster, as well as the box office. The box office is open during the week. Parking varies from $5 to $15 depending on the size of the vehicle and the event. Parking is on N Street. Concessions can be found at Rabobank Arena. The typical concessions like popcorn, hot dogs, beer, soda, etc. are offered during sporting events. For theater events setups with coffee, wine, and other beverages are available before the show and during intermissions. There is a wristband policy at the arena where people can win a prize based on their wristband.