aud seats auction, nov 15 and 16 at buffalo convention center. only 800 pairs being auctioned, 100 online after the event. total bull. they have an arena full of seats and they’re only offering 800. i knew i should have stolen some last year. no way are they going to be affordable. david – you were lucky yours were only 300. jealous. i want 2 seats damnit. i need them for my WOman cave hahah
When the farewell bash is held in November, people will trot out many memories of Memorial Auditorium.
Some will recall sitting in creaky Blue Section seats watching the Buffalo Braves or the Sabres or college basketball doubleheaders. Others will remember childhood jaunts to the Ice Capades or the circus. Still others will relive moments when Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra and other musical icons played to a packed Aud.
On the weekend of Nov. 15-16, the city will stage “Farewell, Old Friend,” a final tribute to the Aud.
The event will be held in the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center and will include an auction of old Blue Section seats and hockey dasher boards.
The two-day extravaganza also will include interactive games for youngsters, a sports memorabilia pavilion and chances to snare the autographs of some athletes who made their marks in the old Aud. Many sports collectors have been invited to display and sell Aud artifacts.
After a competitive bidding process, the city picked Showcase Sports Marketing of Amherst to coordinate the event. Mayor Byron W. Brown said the goal is to turn the auction into a “final salute” to a downtown venue that was home to hockey and basketball games, circuses, concerts, ice shows and scores of other events over the decades.
“It will be a weekend of activities for people of all ages, and it promises to be very exciting,” Brown said.
Admission to the event will be $5 for adults and $3 for students. Children 4 and younger will be admitted free. Joining the mayor at a Wednesday news conference on the steps of City Hall were former Sabres Darryl Shannon, Craig Muni and Derek Smith. They reminisced about important goals scored in the Aud, nail-biting playoff games and “loud and crazy” fans.
Smith remembered the building’s unique ambience, saying there’s something special about older sports arenas.
“There was so much charm to them,” he said.
People who can’t attend the auction will be able to bid on seats a week later in an online auction. About 100 sets of seats will be set aside for online buyers, while 700 sets will be auctioned in the Convention Center. There are anywhere from two to five seats in a set, so in total, about 1,800 seats will auctioned.
The minimum bid for a pair of seats will likely be $100, said Kerry Atkinson, chief operating officer for Showcase Sports.
A Web site will be launched soon that will provide additional information about the weekend events and the online sale of Aud memorabilia. Money raised from the auction will be used to help create a downtown memorial that will pay tribute to the Aud. Showcase Sports will receive 20 percent of net revenues from the event in return for performing all marketing and coordinating tasks.
Opened in 1940, the building has been empty for a dozen years. It is being torn down as part of the continuing development of the Erie Canal Harbor neighborhood.
