What's Inside Lockport's New Kenan Civic Arena, and How Can You Use It This Fall?

When the Kenan Civic Arena opened on Beattie Avenue on September 5, executive director Bill Patti said it "will bring thousands of people into our community" and predicted it would "become a destination." The schedule Kenan has posted so far tells a quieter story. Classes called Her Strength and Strong & Sculpt start at 7:15 a.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Open walking begins at 7:30 a.m. every weekday, and on Mondays, pick-up pickleball starts at the same time. For anyone in Lockport, the arena's real draw this fall is a regular weekday-morning visit, and the prices are set up for people who come often.

The building cost $16.5 million. It sits next to the original arena and holds a fitness center, an indoor turf field, sport courts, concessions, classrooms, a computer lab, community rooms, and dance and art studios. Its size depends on who you ask. The Lockport Journal reported 64,200 square feet, and Kenan's own materials have since said about 70,000 and roughly 73,000. By any of those counts, it's a very large room. What matters more is how Kenan has decided to fill it.

Most of the action happens before lunch

On weekday mornings, the sport courts and the Wellness Zone are booked with drop-in sessions:

Pick-up basketball and pickleball also run on Wednesday and Friday mornings. Pickleball shows up on Tuesday and Thursday mornings too, so it's the one court sport you can play any weekday. Open Art also meets on the first Saturday of the month from 9:00 a.m. to noon.

Late afternoon and evening on the Monday schedule go to the Performing Arts Studio. Yoga Flow starts at 4:15 p.m., followed by Cardio Kickboxing, Core Conditioning, and a Yoga Pilates Fusion class that ends at 8:00 p.m. On Tuesdays, families can try Yogi Kid Adventures from 4:30 to 5:15 p.m., followed by Yogi Queens at 5:30. Weekend hours are shorter. The Wellness Zone is open 7:30 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, and Sunday is Wellness Zone access only.

The math on $10 versus $49

Kenan's All-Access plans are monthly, and the prices are easy to compare with the drop-in fees:

• Individual: $49 a month
• Senior, 55 and older: $39 a month
• Household: $79 a month
• Senior Household: $59 a month, with one member 55 or older and no dependents

If you don't subscribe, pick-up basketball and pickleball on Monday, Wednesday and Friday cost $10 per visit, and classes cost $15 per visit. At those rates, five pickleball mornings in a month cost $50, which is already more than the individual plan. A senior who joins two morning classes a week would spend about $120 a month on drop-ins, compared with $39 for the plan. Two adults on a household plan pay $79, while two individual plans would cost $98.

The plan includes unlimited subscriber classes, open gym for pickleball, basketball, volleyball and walking, Wellness Zone access, priority registration, and babysitting during certain events and concerts, which Kenan says it will announce. Kenan hasn't posted a day pass for the Wellness Zone alone, so if the fitness area is what you want, a monthly plan is the only published way in. Registration for the subscriber classes is still listed as "to be announced."

Evenings belong to the leagues

After the classes end, the courts and turf go to adult leagues, and those games start late. All three leagues run from 8:30 to 11:30 p.m.:

• Indoor soccer: Wednesdays, October 21 to December 16. Costs $400 per team, with a $200 non-refundable deposit and up to 10 players.
• Indoor volleyball: Thursdays, October 22 to December 17. Costs $400 per team, with the same $200 deposit and up to 9 players.
• King of the Court pickleball: Fridays, October 23 to December 18. Costs $75 per person, and you register on your own.

A full soccer roster brings the cost to $40 per player. The pickleball league's $75 covers a stretch with nine Fridays in it, so if play runs every week, that's about $8 a night. That's a little less than the $10 morning drop-in, and you get organized competition instead of open play.

Teams or groups that want their own time can book the turf or courts by calling 716-433-2617 or emailing [email protected]. Kenan doesn't publish rental rates, so you'll get a quote when you contact them. Youth flag football and soccer registration wasn't open yet. Kenan says sign-ups open ahead of each season.

When big events come, members get the Wellness Zone only

Patti said the arena's equipment allows quick changeovers between sports and major public events, and that staff are already getting questions about hosting tournaments and championships. The subscriber schedule spells out what that means for regulars. During major events, subscribers can use only the Wellness Zone.

So the more Kenan succeeds in booking the arena as a destination, the more often the courts will be closed to walkers and pickleball players. No tournament dates were posted when we checked, but if your routine depends on the courts, it's worth checking the calendar before you head over.

This fall's calendar is mostly elsewhere on campus

Most of the ticketed events on Kenan's October through December calendar are in Taylor Theatre or Kenan House, not in the new arena:

Dames At Sea has evening shows at 7:30 p.m. on October 29 and 30 and November 5, 6 and 7, and matinees at 2:30 p.m. on October 31, November 1 and November 8. At Mystic Market on October 17, psychics, mediums and tarot readers will be in Kenan House, and specialty vendors will set up in the Gardens and the Taylor Theatre Meeting Room. The arena only comes into play if it rains, when those vendors move indoors. Taylor Theatre will also host three ticketed group readings.

Kenan House Gallery opens Untitled Studio, an exhibition by seven artists, on October 11, and it stays up through November 22. The gallery's winter hours are Monday noon to 4 p.m., Tuesday through Friday noon to 8 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday 2 to 4 p.m. If you're at the arena for an evening class Tuesday through Friday, the gallery is open until 8:00 p.m.

The Village at Kenan is free

Families with young children have a free option on campus. The Village at Kenan is an interactive play area at the Kenan Center with a baby-doll nursery, a grocery area, a food truck and a play farm. Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center sponsors the nursery. Founding director Ashley Greene told WNY Papers, "Everything we do here is totally free. Anyone can come to The Village. There are no income limits, restrictions, restraints. Could be a grandparent, father, foster parent."

The Village held a sneak peek over Labor Day weekend and planned to open officially in mid- to late September. Its hours are posted on The Village at Kenan Facebook page, not on Kenan's arena schedule. The announcement places it at the Kenan Center but doesn't say which building it's in.

Before you go

The arena's address is 195 Beattie Ave. The rest of campus uses 433 Locust Street. Kenan's contact page lists arena hours as noon to 8:00 p.m. and says it closes on major holidays, but that page was published before the opening. The subscriber schedule shows access from 7:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. on weekdays. If you're planning a first visit before noon, call ahead to confirm the doors will be open.

When Cally isn't helping clients buy and sell homes, she follows changes like this one in her hometown of Lockport. If you're comparing a household plan with drop-ins, or wondering how the new arena changes things on the streets around Beattie Avenue and Locust Street, Cally Couturier is happy to talk it through. Let's Connect.