New Jersey's Izod Center to close for good

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (WABC) -- What was once the home of the New Jersey Nets and Devils will be shutting its doors for good as early as the end of this month. The Izod Center, located at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, will end its 34-year run as a premiere venue for concerts and sporting events.

The facility opened in 1981 as the Brendan Byrne Arena in tribute to former Governor Brendan Byrne. It remained such until 1996, when the naming rights were purchased by Continental Airlines. In 2007, it changed names a second time and became the Izod Center.

The facilities usefulness has been replaced by Newark's Prudential Center, the current home of the New Jersey Devils.

The New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority approved a plan Thursday that would have the Prudential Center in Newark host the Izod Center's remaining scheduled events for February and March.

Only a handful of concerts have been held at the Izod Center over the past two years, although three dozen schools held graduation ceremonies there last spring and the arena still attracts family-oriented holiday shows.

A Christie administration official said all events scheduled past March 31 would not take place at Izod Center, adding that the affected promoters are scheduled to be contacted almost immediately.

Sports Authority President Wayne Hasenbalg said that the decision, though difficult, was a matter of economics and the ongoing transformation of the Meadowlands Sports Complex.

Hasenbalg said there are no immediate plans to demolish the building, and he did not rule out potential alternative uses for the facility in the future.