02/01/2023
Celebration announces Cooper Steel Arena
The Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration announced at its annual meeting that Calsonic Arena will have a new title sponsor and unveiled the naming of Cooper Steel Arena. The partnership will be the most significant outside investment in The Celebration’s history and will lock up the naming rights for at least the next 20 years.
“Family is everything to us at Cooper Steel. When we were approached with the idea of improving this venue to attract more events for the families here, the answer was a resounding yes. We are incredibly proud to be part of this project and so excited to see what the future holds at Cooper Steel Arena,” said Gary Cooper, CEO and President of the Board for Cooper Steel Fabrications.
In an email to all association members and Celebration sponsors, CEO of The Celebration Warren Wells stated the investment from Cooper Steel will include a multi-million dollar inside and outside renovation to the arena. This will include all concourse areas, sound systems, deferred maintenance and upgrades to the RV parks. This investment will be in addition to the new horse arena footing designed by Kiser Arena Specialists out of Texas. Excavation work was performed by Jake Jacobs Construction and installation by Vickers Excavating.
The Celebration has experienced a tremendous amount of growth over the last two years and has made significant improvements from the use of outside sponsorship funds, operating revenues and grants from the state of Tennessee. Some of those improvements include the new arena footing, three new horse barns, and a new entrance to Celebration arena named in memory of late director, David L. Howard. This renovation to Cooper Steel Arena and improvements to the RV parks will put The Celebration on par with the nicest equine facilities in the country.
