The Salem Civic Center, the hub of the James E. Taliaferro Sports and Entertainment Complex, became a part of Salem's landscape October 1967. For more than 50 years, the 7,000 seat facility has welcomed a who's who of entertainment's brightest stars to its stage including the likes of Johnny Cash, Kenny Chesney, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Def Leppard and James Brown. For a number of years, the Civic Center was home to the NCAA Division III men's basketball Final Four, but its round ball roots go all the way back to the old American Basketball Association when Dr. J, Julius Erving, played in the arena as a member of the Virginia Squires. This facility is also a true "civic" center with the city's Rotary, Lions and Kiwanis clubs inhabiting one of the building's numerous meeting rooms on a weekly basis. The venue's Community Room hosts everything from awards banquets to receptions with Salem Catering, an in-house food provider, offering up complete catering services. The Taliaferro Complex is one of the more versatile Entertainment and Sports venues in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Located on 65 acres of land, the complex is home to not only the Salem Civic Center, but also Salem Football Stadium and Salem Memorial Ballpark.