City: Oklahoma City, OK

Category: Nightlife

Telephone: (405) 602-8500

Address: 1 Myriad Gardens

Description: Formerly known as the Myriad Convention Center, the Cox Convention Center is an approximately 1-million-square-foot, 15,000-seat arena, located in the heart of Oklahoma City. This is a historic area for Oklahoma City for when the City was born, this is where all the action took place. About one mile east of where the Cox Center is located now, near the Santa Fe railroad tracks, a tent city sprang up literally overnight. Entrepreneurs like “Kid Bannister,” a Texas gambler, set up his business in a tent across from the Santa Fe Train Depot and declared the first territorial bank open for business. The ‘bank’ was located on the northeast corner of where the Cox Center is located today. Bannister’s neighbors, located on the same block was a saloon, the Two Johns, and the first Oklahoma City Post Office.In the fall of 1972 the $22-million Myriad Convention Center (now the Cox Convention Center) opened its doors. Through the years, the Center has hosted a number of events like basketball games, banquets, concerts, and conventions. It has also been home to several sports franchises like the Oklahoma City Blazers hockey team, the Oklahoma City Calvary basketball team, and Oklahoma Wranglers football team. Major sporting events like All-College basketball tournament, the National Finals Rodeo, and the 2007 Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championships to name a few have been held here. Sesame Street Live, Stars on Ice, and the Harlem Globetrotters have performed here as well as entertainers like Elvis, Brad Paisley, Janet Jackson, and the Rolling Stones to name a few. Republic Parking Systems manages parking for the Center. There are over 900 parking spaces located in the underground parking garages beneath the Cox Center. For guests driving properly licensed or tagged vehicles, handicapped parking spaces are available near the four-level elevator entrances for easy entrance and exit. There are parking entrances to the building on the east side off E.K. Gaylord and the west side off North Robinson. Currently, parking prices are $6 per vehicle per event. Prices are subject to change. Street parking is also available throughout the downtown area. There are over 18,000 spaces and around 1,300 parking meters accessible to those who are attending events. For further information on the center’s parking garage and other city parking facilities, you may call (405) 235-PARK or visit www.parkingokc.com.Guests can keep track of all the events being held at the Cox Convention Center by visiting the center’s Web site. Tickets can be purchased by phone (800-745-3000), online at www.coxconventioncenter.com, or by visiting the U.S. Army Box Office at Ford Center. Ford Center is just south of the Cox Convention Center at 100 West Reno Ave.