199:. On February 7, 2005, Waldinger-Albridge (the contractor assigned to build the Swords' new arena) halted construction on the new arena. During the league's teleconference in April 2005, ECHL commissioner Brian McKenna attempted to contact DVS Sports, the firm in charge of building the new arena. DVA Sports Vice President Larry Kish did not return any calls. The Swords eventually asked for a second one-year waiver in order for their arena to be completed. Despite a full season without a game played, coach
211:. The league terminated the franchise based on the belief that construction would never continue. The incomplete, unnamed arena sat at Lakewood Ranch with no activity in the previous eighteen months. A statement from then-ECHL commissioner McKenna said that "there's a lot of talk, but we have not been presented with any evidence that it is moving forward. You've got to be building a facility. Even if the project changes hands, that's a long way away from where you need to be."
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Due to changing building codes and an incomplete arena with three concrete walls standing alone, demolition was also considered due to the incomplete building not meeting building codes for hurricane resistance. Coincidentally, one of the arena's potential uses was for it to be used as a hurricane shelter.
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for $ 100. Court battles and bankruptcy hearings (including two for DVS Sports) prevented the property from being sold beforehand. Both Chuck Madden and Larry Kish were both on hand for the foreclosure sale and the end of what they had started. Madden described the sale to be "like a funeral" to him.
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After years of mounting debt (estimated to be near $ 20,000,000 in unpaid bills), several lawsuits, and years of franchise inactivity, the ECHL finally terminated the franchise on
September 28, 2006, "effective immediately." The decision was made at the annual ECHL Board Of Governors meeting, which
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A contest was held to name the relocated franchise in
September 2004, with over 3,000 entries received. The winning entry was created by eleven-year-old Mitchell Hudson, whose father Brian suggested the idea of creating a logo after an evening dinner as a way "to keep him busy for the weekend." The
176:, in 2001. In April 2004, the ECHL Board of Governors approved a voluntary suspension request for the franchise and a transfer of home territory request from the membership, allowing the franchise to relocate to Florida.
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226:". Instead of exploding the walls and creating more rubble and cleanup, the walls were eventually lowered to the ground by C&M Road Builders and Southeast Site Development.
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Local officials decided to raze the remaining walls to the incomplete arena in
October 2009. Local residents called the walls an eyesore and mockingly referred to the walls as "
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The
Schroeder-Manatee Group closed the door on the unbuilt arena on April 21, 2009. The land originally used to build the unnamed arena was purchased by the group at a
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140:, the ECHL terminated the franchise on September 28, 2006, more than two years after the franchise was supposed to begin play.
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270:"Boy's idea scores a goal; Lakewood Ranch's hockey team will be called the Gulf Coast Swords"
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was retained by the team and remained under contract during the franchise's inactive status.
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when the
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168:. The Admirals' owners sold their ECHL franchise rights to the
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Three walls raised for an arena will instead be razed, period.
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logo was later debuted in front of seventy people at nearby
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The Swords were originally granted a waiver to skip the
132:(ECHL). Due to years of delays in the construction of
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ECHL Announces
Changes at Board of Governors Meetings
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405:"Long-stalled hockey arena reclaimed by landowner"
184:, located several miles from the nearby arena.
172:, an organization that had been playing in the
486:Defunct ice hockey teams in the United States
431:White elephant watch: Arenas that time forgot
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195:, and join the league at the start of the
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294:"ECHL Mum On Plans For Gulf Coast Swords"
244:"Gulf Coast Swords Information Available"
501:Ice hockey clubs disestablished in 2006
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451:Stockton, Halle (September 19, 2009),
375:"Lakewood Ranch franchise put on ice"
345:Carnefix, Jack (September 28, 2006),
321:"Curran Has To Tough Out Lost Season"
128:were a planned expansion team of the
16:Ice hockey team in Bradenton, Florida
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496:Ice hockey clubs established in 2004
268:Springer, Debi (November 17, 2004),
491:Defunct ice hockey teams in Florida
373:Gluck, Frank (September 30, 2006),
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428:deMause, Neil (April 22, 2009),
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403:Ruger, Todd (April 21, 2009),
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319:Styf, John (April 21, 2005).
191:due to their relocation from
160:until the completion of the
148:The franchise originated in
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209:Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
130:East Coast Hockey League
409:Sarasota Herald Tribune
379:Sarasota Herald Tribune
325:Sarasota Herald Tribune
298:Sarasota Herald-Tribune
274:Sarasota Herald Tribune
154:Hampton Roads Admirals
95:Hampton Roads Admirals
174:Central Hockey League
170:Columbus Cottonmouths
162:1999–2000 ECHL season
105:Columbus Cottonmouths
385:on December 17, 2012
355:on December 22, 2010
248:OurSportsCentral.com
182:Lakeland County Club
197:2005–06 ECHL season
189:2004–05 ECHL season
481:Defunct ECHL teams
250:, December 1, 2004
156:and played at the
138:Bradenton, Florida
41:Bradenton, Florida
193:Columbus, Georgia
150:Norfolk, Virginia
126:Gulf Coast Swords
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117:Gulf Coast Swords
86:Franchise history
71:Black, Red, White
22:Gulf Coast Swords
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353:the original
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328:. Retrieved
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302:. Retrieved
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207:was held in
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201:Brian Curran
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112:never played
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460:November 5,
437:November 5,
414:November 5,
389:November 5,
359:November 5,
330:November 5,
304:November 5,
279:November 5,
254:November 5,
475:Categories
230:References
224:Stonehenge
58:Home arena
101:2001–2004
91:1989–2000
144:History
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68:Colors
48:League
462:2012
439:2012
416:2012
391:2012
361:2012
332:2012
306:2012
281:2012
256:2012
124:The
52:ECHL
36:City
136:in
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