The CenturyLink Center Omaha is an arena and convention center in the North Downtown neighborhood in Omaha, Nebraska operated by the Metropolitan Entertainment & Convention Authority (MECA). The 1,100,000sqft facility has an 18,975-seat arena, a 194,000sqft exhibition hall and 62,000sqft of meeting space.The complex opened in 2003 as Qwest Center Omaha. It adopted its current name on July 15, 2011, as part of a $22 billion buyout of Qwest by CenturyLink (formerly CenturyTel). All signage, inside and outside, changed to conform to the new arena name and exterior accent lighting changed from blue to green. Work completed on December 20, 2011. The contract expires in 2018 and MECA is preparing to negotiate a new contract.The arena hosts basketball games, hockey games, professional wrestling events and concerts and the annual shareholders' meeting of Omaha-based conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway, usually held on the first Saturday of May.The arena's primary tenant is the Creighton University men's basketball team. Through the 2014–15 NCAA ice hockey season, the Omaha Mavericks men's team, representing the University of Nebraska Omaha, was also a primary tenant, but the Mavericks moved to the new Baxter Arena for the 2015–16 season.
