Congratulations to the 2017 Hall of Headlines award winners! Venues Today will be highlighting their accomplishments in the December issue. Contact an account executive to reserve a congratulatory ad by December 8.

NEWS

Peter Luukko and Tim Leiweke, co-chairs, Arena Alliance
Oak View Group, Los Angeles
For purchasing Pinnacle Venue Services and establishing OVG Facilities, aiming to build the biggest private management firm in the world. Tom Paquette and Doug Higgons, owners of Pinnacle, joined the new firm and, under Luukko's leadership, OVG Facilities is seeking to build on Pinnacle's six-venue portfolio at a rapid pace.

Chris Verros, CEO
Centerplate
For facilitating the sale of Centerplate to Sodexo for $675 million. The sale will close by the end of the year. Verros will continue as CEO of the combined companies in North America and Sodexo will take over Centerplate’s international accounts.

BOOKINGS
Jerry Goldman, AGM/SMG
U.S. Bank Stadium, Minneapolis
For booking the Summer ESPN X Games and three stadium concerts at U.S. Bank Stadium within the first year of operating. Goldman secured Guns N’ Roses, Coldplay and U2 to Minneapolis for a 2017 concert series, topping 147,000 in attendance for the concerts and over 100,000 attendees for the X Games with an estimated 400 million viewers worldwide. Additionally, Goldman secured the Summer ESPN X Games (2017 and 2018) and the 2020 NCAA Wrestling Championships, both of which have never been hosted by an NFL Stadium until their U.S. Bank Stadium debut.

MARKETING
Maureen Ginty, Exec. VP – Marketing Services & Human Resources
SMG, West Conshohocken, Pa.
For implementing the launch of a “Gift of Kindness Campaign” in celebration of SMG’s 40th Anniversary (1977-2017) and to reflect the character of the employees who have contributed to SMG’s ongoing success. The campaign honors the spirit of charity and compassion SMG employees demonstrate in their work life and personal life. SMG chooses 4 quarterly winners with an overall grand prize winner at the end of the year. All recipients receive a themed Waterford crystal ornament, part of their greatest gifts collection. The gift of kindness promotes understanding and strengthening the bonds of humanity. In addition, each winner receives a cash award. This concept fits perfectly with the basic tenet of the company training programs “knekt.”

OPERATIONS
Kerry Painter, AGM
Cox Business Center, Tulsa Okla.
For her work leading a rebrand, overseeing major construction projects, teaching within the industry, and acting as an Interim GM for another SMG facility, all while guiding an IAVM Venue Excellence Award winning team and facility. After inclusion in Tulsa’s 2020 Vision Master Plan and approval of funds through the Tulsa Vision plan, Painter began work on modernizing the space. In 2017, her work paid off when the venue was selected as “Top New or Renovated Meeting Space” by Convention South, selected by Tulsa People reader’s as “Best Event Center” in Tulsa, and one of five national venues selected by the International Association of Venue Managers (IAVM) for the Venue Excellence Award.

CONCESSIONS
Sandra Dunn, GM, & Albert Fera, Dir. of Food & Beverage for Savor
DCU Center/SMG, Worcester, Mass.
For implementing a new Branded Batch Cocktail Program as a way to decrease concourse congestion, increase per caps, control liquor and labor costs and enhance the fan experience. Since the program began, Savor…Worcester has recorded the highest per caps in the venue’s history. The Branded Batch Cocktail Program features event-themed craft cocktails premade in 5-gallon water jugs and served from large drink dispensers on portables throughout the concourse. The custom Batch Cocktails are branded to target the shows key demographics featuring flavor profiles and colors that are popular and spirits that are trending and then given names that are easily recognized by the audience and that tie into the event. Through increased points of sale, the Batch Cocktail Program has led to the top 6 gross sales per cap records for arena concessions including Pearl Jam ($11.19 + $10.55), Phish ($11.02 + $10.82), Dead & Company ($12.43), Garth Brooks ($13.14, $13.71, $10.48), Megadeth ($13.50) and I Love The 90’s Tour ($15.76).

Congratulatory ad deadline: December 8, 2017

Advertising contacts:

Rich DiGiacomo
Northeast, Western U.S. & Int'l
(310) 429-3678
rich@venuestoday.com

Jim McNeil
Texas, Southeastern & Midwest U.S.
(207) 609-2676
jim@venuestoday.com

Wembley Stadium, London, the first U.K. venue to use contactless ticketing.

(Editor's Note: This story first appeared in SportTechie.com.)

Wembley Stadium is becoming the U.K.’s first sports and entertainment stadium to offer contactless ticketing to fans, thanks to a partnership with mobile phone network EE, according to the venue.

This partnership will allow fans to add their tickets to Apple Wallet on iPhones or Apple Watches. In addition to contactless tickets, fans will be able to use their iPhones and Apple Watches to pay for food and beverage via Apple Pay.

The technology was sent through a number of tests at England’s soccer friendlies against Germany and Brazil, and after those successful trials earlier this month, it will be rolled out for all ticketed events at the stadium in 2018 and beyond. Customers purchasing tickets for the March 27 match  between England and Italy can choose “electronic delivery” to have the option of storing their tickets in their Apple Wallet.

“We’re delighted that Wembley Stadium is one of the first global venues to work alongside Fortress GB and Apple to bring this technology to fans, and we are committed to providing this technology across our ticketing platform for all events in 2018, onwards,” Paul Smyth, Head of Ticketing at The FA, said in a statement. “The innovation strengthens our aspiration to be the digital leader in supporter entry, establishing greater one-to-one contact with the consumer and making it easier and safer for all.”

Thomas Ovesen, newly appointed VP, programming, for the soon-to-open Dubai Arena.

Danish-born Thomas Ovesen, a major player in the development of the live touring industry in the Middle East for the last 17 years, has been named the first member of the leadership team at the 17,000-seat Dubai Arena for AEG Ogden, on behalf of Meraas, a Dubai-based holding company. Oversen will take on the role of VP, programming. 

Oversen previously oversaw the launch of Autism Rocks Arena, Dubai, and was the CEO of 117 Live, a Dubai-based conglomerate with a large entertainment portfolio. Venues Today spoke with Oversen about his new position, his goals, and why he’s a great fit for the new arena.

When did talks start with AEG Ogden?

Since setting up the AEG Live (Now AEG Presents) Middle East operation years ago, I have remained in touch on regular basis with the company and had collaborations with both the “live” and “facilities” teams concerning the Middle East and elsewhere.

When will you start?

The Dubai Arena project is due to open spring 2019, so we are in the early phases of the project with the venue still under construction. I will join the organization in January 2018. I’m joining a small team of executives headed up by CEO Guy Ngata. I very much look forward to the collaboration with Guy and to learn the ropes from him of running an arena — and sparring with him on programming issues in particular for the first couple of seasons.

How is running a venue in the Middle East different from Australia or the U.K. or the U.S.?

I‘ve been based in the Middle East since 1998; first in Bahrain and now in Dubai. The Dubai Arena will be the first fully-fledged indoor arena in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and one of a few in the region. While I have promoted and produced shows here for the past 17-plus years, and have recently been working on the new open-air venue, Autism Rocks Arena, I have never before been involved with conventional arena management — that is why Guy Ngata is here as he has experience with both opening and running such facilities.

Any challenges with the culture difference?

While we have some local and cultural sensitivities, these are nothing major and certainly no “showstoppers” — nothing more than what general courtesy and respect will mitigate.

What are prices and per caps like in Middle East?

With the arena opening in 2019, and the planned event volume, we expect the arena will become a regional live entertainment hub and catalyst for the new lay of the land when it comes to ticket pricing and attendance numbers, as the sheer volume of events put on will force us to review current ticket pricing models to ensure full houses and max number of annual admissions sold per household. The projected inbound UAE tourism will also be vital for us achieving our goals and targets.

Why do you think you are a good fit for the company and venue?

I have the local knowledge and have previous experience with working for AEG, as well as my recent promoter and venue operator experience, which will be valuable for Guy and the arena team.

What goals do you have for the new position?

Nothing short of establishing the arena as the regional live entertainment hub and seeing more local residents attending more shows annually than they do now and, of-course, having some awesome experiences in what will be a state-of-the-art arena.

Pray For Manchester: A couple embrace one day after the Manchester attack May 23 under a billboard in England. (Photo Credit: AP/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

(Editor's Note: This story first appeared in Pollstar.com and the original story can be found here.)

After Manchester City Council had pointed out that the UK government’s initial financial aid in the May 22 aftermath had been insufficient, Prime Minister Theresa May pledged to cover all costs, which could be up to £28 million (about $37 million). 

The UK government initially pledged £12 million ($16 million) toward the costs that incurred in the wake of the May 22 bomb attack on Manchester Arena during an Ariana Grande concert to cover authority and emergency services.

According to Manchester’s Mayor Andy Burnham, the help was “inconclusive and that is not good enough.” He posted a letter from the prime minister detailing the financial support on Twitter.

Burnham added, “the costs relating to the Manchester Arena attack should be reimbursed in full by the government.” According to the mayor, £17.5 million ($23 million) had already been spent, and at least £10.4 million ($13.8 million) more may be needed.

He got his way. May has now pledged that “Manchester will get the financial support it needs, and if that costs £28 million, as Burnham has estimated, then that is what we will make available.”

To oversee this process and “expedite payments when necessary,” May established a taskforce dedicated to Manchester over the weekend.

“It will coordinate the cross-government response, pulling together the work of the Home Office, the Department for Communities and Local Government, the Department of Health and the Ministry of Justice,” May explained in a statement.

Burnham responded, “we will work constructively with the taskforce to achieve a fair resolution,” and thanked the prime minister on Twitter.

In her statement, May also said, “the terror attack in Manchester was one of the darkest moments in the city's history. Twenty-two people were killed in a brutal act of hatred deliberately aimed at innocent children on what should have been one of the best nights of their young lives.”

“In the hours, days and weeks that followed the Arena bombing, the spirit of Manchester shone out in defiance of an attack designed to destroy lives and devastate a community.

“I promised in the wake of that appalling atrocity this Government would do all it could to help victims recover and the city to heal. I repeat that commitment today. Where your public services have had to bear, or will bear, unexpected and exceptional costs in coping with this terrible attack, these will be met by the Government.”

SMG Europe, which runs Manchester Arena, UK Music CEO Michael Dugher and industry body Live Music Group chairman, Paul Latham declined Pollstar’s request for comment.

A rendering made available by Qatar World Cup's Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy, responsible for organizing World Cup 2020, shows the 40,000-seat Ras Abu Aboud Stadium.

Ras Abu Aboud is one of the venues that will host the World Cup in 2022 in Dubai. It will also be the first-ever venue that can be taken down and reassembled.

The 40,000-seat stadium will be built on Doha's southern waterfront and will host matches up to the quarter-final stage. After the tournament, the stadium will be disassembled, gently, with each piece carefully placed into containers to be reassembled and used in another location.

"This venue will be unique in that it will be capable of being reassembled in a new location in its entirety," said Javier Iribarren, founder of the a Madrid-based company, Fenwick Iribarren, the firm designing the venue and another tournament venue, the Qatar Foundation Stadium.

“The building will be made up of modified shipping containers,” said Iribarren. “This will make the process of putting it up and taking it down simple and easy.”

The firm got the idea of constructing a reusable stadium after one of the architects watched his child play with a Lego set.

“My colleague was struck by the idea of putting together a structure and then pulling it apart and reshaping it into a new structure,” he said. “We thought, ‘we can do this with an entire stadium’ and set out to find a way to make that happen. The modified shipping containers were the key to making that dream a reality.”

Iribarren is unclear on where — or in what shape— the reconstructed building will appear. “It could show up as a full stadium or be reassembled into several different buildings,” he said. “We’re designing it with flexibility.”

Each of the sections of the venue, including the concessions and bathrooms, is separate, said Iribarren.

“We are delighted to be part of another 2022 World Cup project, and are very proud that our design for Ras Abu Aboud Stadium will go down in history as the first-ever moveable and reusable World Cup stadium,” said Mark Fenwick, senior partner at Iribarren Fenwick. "We are confident that this innovative and sustainable concept will be an inspiration for stadium developers and architects around the world, capable of creating aesthetically pleasing venues that offer new legacy possibilities.”

The stadium should be completed by 2020, said Iribarren. The final cost of the project is still being worked out. “There are still factors we have to work out,” said Fenwick about the ultimate price tag.

Secretary General of the 2022 World Cup organizing committee Hassan Al Thawadi said in a statement, “Innovation has always been central to our plans for delivering a historic FIFA World Cup that leaves a legacy for Qatar and the world, and there is no better example of this than the design of Ras Abu Aboud Stadium.

“This venue offers the perfect legacy, capable of being reassembled in a new location in its entirety or built into numerous small sports and cultural venues,” he said. “All of this in a stadium that delivers the atmosphere fans expect at a World Cup and which we will build in a more sustainable way than ever before."

Since being chosen as the site of the 2022 World Cup, Qatar has found itself at the center of a global firestorm. Critics accuse the country of being corrupt, having poor human rights, rife with labor abuse, and a hotbed of terrorist activity.

Earlier this year, Qatar unveiled its first completed World Cup 2022 venue, the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha, which will also be used to host the World Athletics Championships in two years' time.

Bruce Sprigsteen played XL Center, Hartford, Conn., which may soon be on the block.

The XL Center, the 16,000-plus capacity multipurpose arena in downtown Hartford, Conn., could soon go on the market in search of a new owner.

Michael Freimuth, executive director of the Capital Region Development Authority (CRDA), said the CRDA is considering seeking buyers for the arena, which is owned by the city of Hartford. The CRDA, an economic development agency for the Hartford area, operates the venue, while Spectra oversees venue operations, such as catering, booking events and sales. The Connecticut General Assembly recently approved $40 million for improvements to the XL Center and included a provision that the arena’s managers should seek new owners by June 2019. However, Freimuth said the CRDA expects it could move sooner than that.

Freimuth said seeking a sale earlier than 2019 would help avoid a scenario in which the XL Center’s unknown future becomes a hindrance to its successful operation.

“There is a concern that allowing the matter to linger has greater problems in that it creates an uncertainty in the market with event promoters, event sponsors, staff and the general public,” Freimuth said.

The XL Center, which opened in 1975, serves as the home arena of the University of Connecticut women’s and men’s basketball teams and the American Hockey League’s (AHL) Hartford Wolf Pack, the primary developmental affiliate of the New York Rangers. The venue, which was originally named the Hartford Civic Center Veterans Memorial Coliseum and Exhibition Center, also stages concerts, family shows, ice-skating events, consumer events and trade shows. During its long history, the XL Center has hosted major musical performers ranging from the Beach Boys and Diana Ross to Taylor Swift and Drake.

Freimuth said the XL Center’s strengths to potential buyers include that it is a long-established property with high name recognition, appealing education- and income-level demographics for its audiences, an affiliation with the University of Connecticut and relatively easy access for visitors. Freimuth also pointed to more than $50 million of public investment for improvements in the facility in the past three years. Freimuth said the arena’s appeal can be strengthened with continued state support for operations and capital upgrades. The $40 million in improvements recently earmarked by the state legislature is pending approval by the State Bond Commission.

Freimuth said the climate for state support is challenging. The CRDA had sought a larger commitment toward a proposed $250 million renovation of the XL Center, but the legislature opted for a smaller figure. The CRDA pursued potential partners for a new private-public partnership for the arena earlier this year but found scant interest, Freimuth said.

“The process and the degree to which the state supports the building are all a work in progress,” Freimuth said. “We’ve had a variety of false starts (having tried a public/private partnership earlier this year and getting only one response), and the general public’s support in these times of difficult budgets has waned.”

Freimuth said he does not believe the field of potential buyers for the XL Center is large. He expects those most interested in the arena will be those who are attracted to the venue’s role in the city and region and who might be considering the XL Center as a centerpiece to something larger instead of as a standalone entity.

“We think the universe is limited and will probably include those investors who have an interest in Hartford redevelopment greater than just the XL Center,” he said.

With that in mind, Freimuth said an important characteristic for an interested buyer will be “experience in operating and nurturing an entertainment venue as part of an urban redevelopment scenario.”

The XL Center’s origins in the 1970s can be traced to redevelopment efforts in those days of downtown Hartford. Freimuth said the Hartford Civic Center was one of the country’s first major public/private partnerships when it was developed as a collaboration between the city of Hartford and Aetna. The arena attracted national attention when its roof collapsed after a heavy snowstorm in January 1978, shutting down the arena until it reopened in February 1980. XL Insurance purchased naming rights to the building in 2007.

Freimuth said nearly 600,000 people attend events each year at the XL Center, “driving restaurant, bar, parking, hotel spending, while the building provides work to over 800 people on both a part-time and full-time basis.”

Oz Griebel, president and CEO of the MetroHartford Alliance, which has more than 1,000 businesses, municipalities and organization as members, said the XL Center is a key economic development piece to the city and region.

“It’s very important to the overall development of the capital city, particularly the downtown area,” Griebel said. “And we believe as the downtown area goes, so goes the city, and as the city of Hartford goes so goes the region in terms of its economic growth and its ability to attract and retain private sector employment and investment. So it’s an absolutely vital asset.”

Griebel said the XL Center’s importance to Hartford goes beyond its fiscal value.

“It has both a real impact on the restaurants and the bars and the immediate area but it also has a great psychological impact,” Griebel said. “People want to be where there is stuff going on. To me, it’s a combination of the fiscal reality of what a venue like that does but also how it makes people feel.”

Freimuth agreed, saying the arena supports broader efforts to attract potential downtown residents.

“It is a component of a larger urban lifestyle strategy that it is critical to appeal to those seeking to live downtown, who in turn form the basis of the next generation of the labor force,” Freimuth said.

In the years since its founding, the XL Center has seen the landscape for venues and entertainment in the region toughen, Griebel said. He points to the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut and the Webster Arena in Bridgeport, Connecticut as examples of regional venues that compete for events and audiences.

Griebel said the city around the XL Center has seen positive changes over the past 15 to 20 years, such as a major expansion of housing downtown, but critical to the arena’s success will be improving the economic climate in Hartford and the state.

“We have to grow the economy in the state of Connecticut,” Griebel said. “We have to grow the economy in the state, and we have to grow the population. We’ve been stagnant in the state – in fact, we’ve been losing population for the past two or three years. We’ve really had no aggregate job growth over the last 20 years. We have to grow so that there are people who want to come to the venue.”

Guns N' Roses played Madison Square Garden, New York City, to a packed house. (Photo Credit: Alvin Ho/LAMC Productions)

After officially opening T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, April 8-9, 2016, during the beginning of their Not In This Lifetime tour, Guns N’ Roses returned Nov. 17 to rock a full-capacity crowd which grossed over $2.1 million topping our chart this week. The first time GNR played on the T-Mobile Arena stage, lead singer Axl Rose was recovering from a broken foot and performed sitting down; this time around, Rose never stopped moving, giving fans an energetic and exhilarating performance. The rock music icons also turned their former reputation of extreme tardiness around; the band was not only punctual, but they played for an exhausting three and a half hours.

The Guns N’ Roses’ Live Nation-produced tour recently added 15  North American stadium and arena stops to the ongoing, worldwide tour, including a stop at Oracle Arena, Oakland, Calif., and Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, Calif., which also made our chart this week. The two sold-out shows combined grossed a whopping $3.5 million with 26,000 fans in attendance.

New mom Janet Jackson got back to business, after taking some time with her new baby earlier this year, by performing at the Cajundome, Lafayette, La., Sept. 7, with her State of the World tour, which is a continuation of the Unbreakable World tour that was postponed in 2016. Jackson showed up on our chart this week with a stop at Van Andel Arena, Grand Rapids, Mich., grossing $300,000 with over 7,000 fans in attendance. This tour will be wrapping up on Dec. 17, at Philips Arena, Atlanta.

HOT TICKETS is a weekly summary of the top acts and ticket sales as reported to VT PULSE. Following are the top 20 concerts and events, the top 5 in each seating capacity category, which took place between Oct. 31-Nov. 28.

Austin Texas' Parish will go to the highest bidder after an auction held on eBay, Dec. 1-10.

A club in the heart of Austin, Texas' well-known Sixth Street Entertainment District is being put up for sale to literally the highest bidder.

Ownership of The Parish, a 425-capacity room regarded as having some of the best acoustics and sound engineering in the live music hotbed, will be available for bid on eBay beginning Dec. 1 and open until Dec. 10.

The transaction is not for the real estate property that contains The Parish but will give the winner the club business, its current bookings, the chance to renew the company’s liquor license, all bar and sound equipment and supplies and a 12-year lease with the option for two five-year renewals.

ATX Brands has owned the business for eight years, and owner Doug Guller said he decided in early 2017 to sell his three music venues so he could focus on growing his restaurant brands Bikini’s and Happy Chicks. In July, Guller sold the historic 19th century Scoot Inn outdoor music venue to Austin-based festival promoter C3 Presents and he also auctioned off the Schroeder Hall in Goliad, Texas, in April.

“This is the last of our pure music venues to go, and I’m hoping to get it in the hands of a live music fan who can take it to the next level,” Guller told Venues Today. “The great thing about The Parish is it’s an ongoing venue business with lots of success. All the shows transfer over to the new owner, so whoever wins the auction basically gets a nice shiny car and all they have to do is keep it running between the lines.”

While the online auction process is a novel and somewhat unusual method of selling a business, Guller said he wanted to circumvent the traditional professional networks and alliances that tend to form in a business community, with the hope of bringing someone new into the circle of Austin club owners.

“I wanted to cast a wide net, and when things like properties come up for sale, the broker usually just sends the info out to their email list and that’s it,” he said. “Properties trade very well with brokers, but when it comes to selling an entire business, there’s not really a set formula or process for how to get it done.”

Guller said there is an undisclosed minimum bid for the business and didn’t give an estimate or desired final price he’s seeking.

As an upstairs club on a stretch where street level foot traffic generates the bulk of the business in dozens of bars and nightclubs, The Parish has for years been something of an in-between venue among the approximately four dozen venues that use original live music as their main attraction to bring customers in the door.

While major acts such as Pete Townshend, Thom Yorke and Perry Farrell have played the intimate brick and wood-paneled room in recent years, its calendar typically features only a half dozen national or local bookings per month, with national tour bookings handled mostly by C3 Presents.

According to the Texas comptroller’s office, through the first half of 2017 The Parish averaged roughly $15,000 in monthly liquor sales, which are the main revenue driver for most music venues. That figure puts the venue far behind comparable downtown Austin rooms such as the Mohawk or Empire Control Room, which typically have far more active calendars and can generate more than $200,000 per month in liquor sales.

Live music stakeholders in Austin are planning to watch the auction closely. The sale comes as multiple long-running venues in the downtown’s two entertainment districts are facing double-digit percentage rent increases because of development pressure.

Rebecca Reynolds, president of the Austin’s chapter of the Music Venue Alliance, said she has concerns about whether the winning bidder will have the experience, skills and contacts needed to run a successful live music venue.

“Those of us with much interest in the health of this venue want to see it go to a capable owner who will nurture it and make it the best venue possible,” she said. “I don’t know if there will be any consideration made, if from among the top bidders the winner will be the one that has the best abilities, but I believe it is Doug’s goal to get it into the hands of someone who’s going to be a good member of the music community.”

Reynolds said The Parish’s reputation as one of the most fan and artist friendly clubs in Austin should make it an attractive purchase.

“It’s a beautiful space, and whoever inherits it gets a huge asset,” she said. “We might end up with someone from a different part of the state or different part of the country, and I hope that it’s someone with good sense about how to run a music venue.”

Brad Feichter.

Brad Feichter has been named event manager at the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center (MCCNO), the sixth largest convention center in the nation.

Feichter comes to the MCCNO after serving for three years as a senior banquet manager for the convention center’s food and beverage contractor, Centerplate. Previously, he was the banquet manager for the National WWII Museum in New Orleans. 

Prior to becoming event manager, Feichter oversaw the daily operations of Centerplate’s banquets department. 

Feichter attended Johnson & Wales University, Charlotte, N.C. and graduated with a bachelor of science, majoring in hotel management.

USSSA Space Coast Complex has moved to Brevard County, Fla., and will open in early January with TicketForce as their ticketing partner.

TicketForce and United States Specialty Sports Association (USSSA) Space Coast Complex, Viera, Fla., are partnering on ticketing for the multi-field venue, including all ticket sales —online and walkup.

This state of the art, multi-sport complex will be holding its first event on Jan. 5, 2018, after moving 75 miles from Osceola County and leaving the Disney Sports family.

The new home of USSSA will feature four National Collegiate Athletic Associations (NCAA) regulation softball fields, four NCAA regulation baseball fields, four practice fields, and an 18,000-sq.-ft. indoor training and rehab center. It’s expected to host everything from youth baseball to fast-pitch and slow-pitch events.

The field is currently home to the USSSA Pride, a National Pro Women’s Fast-Pitch team, and earlier this year was awarded the hosting rights to the 2018 Women’s Baseball World Cup, which will take place in August. This will be the first time the tournament will be held in the United States.

The agreement with the Tourist Development Council (TDC) of Brevard County is for 20 years. The facility will host 40,000 events a year. All the events are ticketed. The facility will be operational in the beginning of 2018.

“The TicketForce platform stood out for its online and mobile capabilities, the option to add additional products to the sale before check-out, as well as overall flexibility,” said Kevin Reynolds, GM, USSSA. “We are excited to show our association and our guests this system. They can purchase online with no added fees to print at home or save on smart phone tickets. They will be able to avoid the lines when they arrive, park the car, head to the entrance and enjoy the event in our state of the art complex.”

Reynolds said that he chose TicketForce because they have “a dynamic ticketing system that can do a lot of things and not just sell tickets.”

The TicketForce system is designed for both presales and walkup sales, which the facility expects to be a major part of the ticketing process.

“I also liked that TicketForce doesn’t nickel-and-dime their customers with this fee and that fee,” said Reynolds. “We have low ticket prices here, and we want to keep the price low and not alienate the fans with printing fees and download fees.”

Reynolds is also impressed with the technology of TicketForce. “We have a lot of people coming from towns that want pictures and merchandise, and TicketForce allows us to integrate all that into the system, as well as concessions,” he said. “TicketForce makes it all easy and we determined they would be the best fit.”

The USSSA concessionaire is a local company, Collins Catering & Events, and the merchandise company is Boombah, a manufacturer of shirts, uniforms, and hats. “Merchandise is a healthy percentage of our revenue,” he said.

“We have people who come for three-to-four days at a stretch, from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., and we need to serve that dynamic, so we change 35 percent of the offerings everyday,” he explained. “The same concession food would go stale after day one, so changing the selections is a great way to keep up the F&B sales.”

The contract with TicketForce is for three years, and Reynolds expects to sell about 500,000 tickets in year one at the new site.

Lynne King Smith, CEO, TicketForce, said that her company is “thrilled with the deal for Space Coast Complex.”

King Smith said the talks started with USSSA “around six months ago” and the contract was signed in early November. Ticket sales will start in in January. “We’re set up for digital sales, but USSSA has a lot of walkup sales; we’re particularly strong in that area, and that’s a big component of what we will bring to them,” she said.

“There’s a lot of good technology out there, but we really understand their needs,” she said.

TicketForce, based in Phoenix, has several Florida-based clients including Florida Theatre, Jacksonville; Tampa Theatre; and Palm Beach State College. Last year, TicketForce clients sold more than $80 million worth of tickets.

Rick Vymlatil, South Florida Fair & Palm Beach County Expositions, West Palm Beach, and incoming chair of the International Association of Fairs & Expositions (IAFE), is seen with Marla Calico, IAFE president and CEO. (VT Photo)

REPORTING FROM LAS VEGAS — After four record years attendance-wise, the Minnesota State Fair, St. Paul, is still configured and programmed for 1.5 million people. In 2016, it drew 1.9 million, and management thought, “wow, we won’t see that again,” and then they did.

Those growing pains are a good thing to have and Jerry Hammer, manager of the St. Paul event, was looking at options both here, during the International Association of Fairs & Expositions convention Nov. 26-29, and back home, where he was headed for another round of expansion planning.

“We’re looking at sea containers,” he said of planned outdoor/indoor development, particularly for the Pet Center, which is currently in a warehouse. [Coincidentally, yet another architect is looking at sea containers in new construction – see the story on Qatar’s World Cup stadium in this VT Pulse.)

Hammer doesn’t see the fair and festival business slowing down because “people are hard wired to share experiences. Ours happen to be traditional agricultural shows,” he said of what state fairs have in common with all live entertainment, which is on an upswing.

The vibe was upbeat at this year’s IAFE convention, where Cynthia Hoye, manager of the Indiana State Fair, Indianapolis, was inducted into the IAFE Hall of Fame; Becky Brashear, Maryland State Fair, Timonium, completed her term as IAFE chair, and Rick Vymlatil, South Florida Fair & Palm Beach County Expositions Inc., West Palm Beach, stepped into that role.

Even the pending move to San Antonio for the next four years, after holding this convention in Vegas for the last 40, was looked upon as positive. Marla Calico, IAFE president and CEO, said member feedback has been pro-San Antonio — change is good. There will be eight convention hotels in San Antonio, something for everyone, and events will take place at the convention center.

“We’re moving to the convention center model,” she said, assuring anyone who is concerned about being “spread out” that all but two of the hotels and the convention center in San Antonio fit in a footprint the size of the Vegas headquarters hotels, Bally’s and Paris. There is also no smoking in the convention center and San Antonio is more affordable for eating out, she said.

The fact that the IAFE convention skewed more than 50 percent women for the first time last year also informed the decision to move out of Vegas. “It’s the number two culinary destination in the world,” Calico said, quoting a magazine article and noting the Culinary Institute of America is headquartered there.

She expects attendance to possibly increase with the change. Numbers were not in yet for this year’s convention, which closes tomorrow, but she said it has held steady at about 4,000 for the last few conventions, which includes Outdoor Amusement Business Association and Showmen’s League of America registrants as well

Brashear added that San Antonio is a family-friendly city with restaurants, culture and sightseeing. The newcomers to the industry, in particular, are open to change, she said.

To that end, conventioneers spent several sessions hammering out the fair industry of the future, what it will look like in 20 years. Results will be published next year. “We need to be ready for 2030,” Brashear said. The sessions were an open discussion.

Robert Fogle and Becky Brashear of the Maryland State Fair, Timonium, celebrate with new Certified Fair Executives as a reception during IAFE. (VT Photo)

Brashear’s main takeaway from this year’s gathering is the significance of “the engagement piece,” meaning the need to offer participatory exhibits and entertainment, which is critical to drawing the next generation of fairgoers.

For Tracey Gardner, GM, Mississippi State Fair, Jackson, a primary takeaway was that people come to the fair to eat. Some come for the rides, some for entertainment, some for agricultural exhibits, some for commercial exhibits, but they all eat.

On the state fair highway, food is the center lane, she said, while admitting hers is a flat-fee fair. Concessionaires pay a flat fee per front foot — from $118-$147— so the fair does not participate in the upside on a percentage basis. This year, for the first time, they did change from one flat fee to a graduated charge, depending on location.

Gardner noted the Mississippi State Fair is currently without a CEO, having said goodbye to Rick Reno two days after the October event, which drew 701,000 attendees. The board has not yet announced plans for a new CEO.

She was headed home to host the Dixie National Rodeo, which moves in in February, and to watch construction of a new trade center which will be under construction by spring and is being designed by Populous (see story in the November issue of Venues Today.)

Change is underway at the Central Washington State Fair, Yakima, as well. GM Greg Stewart said the new $2-million catering kitchen, which was approved two years ago, is about to become reality. Design is done and construction will be out to bid in January. They will break ground in March and debut the new improvement, which is housed in the Sundome arena, at next year’s fair. This year’s fair drew 323,000, Stewart said.

The new catering kitchen comes on the heels of a change from self-op to hiring Spectra as concessionaire. They came on board Aug. 1, with Phil Hossler as GM.

“Find your niche and think outside the box,” said Renee Alexander, Minnesota State Fair, St. Paul, entertainment buyer of her takeaway, particularly from the panel on entertainment she moderated. For some fairs, that has meant booking boxing, for some it’s more gasoline events (motorsports), and for some, like Minnesota, there has been great success with comedy.

Food and drink was top of mind for many who attended sessions for certification on that topic. Rey O’Day of the National Independent Concessionaires Association, got down to the nitty gritty of making the customer comfortable.

“If you see a lonely bottle somewhere, throw it away, because a single piece of trash becomes a trash can,” she said. And that pile accumulates rapidly.

On a management note, O’Day suggested concessions managers schedule times to be in the office versus on the grounds, which makes it easier to make appointments rather than spending the fair hunting each other down. “A lot of times, people who schedule appointments solve the problem before their appointed time,” she noted.

Another topic top of mind with many conventioneers was this year's tragic ride accident at the Ohio State Fair, Columbus, which impacted other fairs down the line and worldwide. Representatives from that fair, that fair’s PR firm and the carnival industry dissected the response and lessons learned in 2017, which Venues Today will recap next week in the Dec. 6 VT Pulse.

A key takeaway was that venue managers should remember this is their business and they need to get in front of any crisis with their own key audience, which is the people they do business with directly. When there is a food recall, for instance, David Margulies, The Margulies Communications Group, advises his clients to call Walmart or whoever buys their product first – don’t let them hear it via social or news media.

“The focus is on keeping your business going, which is much more important to you than it is to the media,” Margulies said.

Stevie Nicks performed her 24 Karat Gold tour at Frank Erwin Center, Austin, Texas. (Photo Credit: Gary Miller)

Stevie Nicks’ 24 Karat Gold Tour made its way to Sydney’s International Convention Centre for two near-capacity shows, Nov. 7-8, grossing a total of $1.2 million. With the Pretenders as the opening act, the nearly 12,000 fans in attendance were treated to a no-nonsense, hit-filled opening set. Once Nicks hit the stage, she informed the crowd that it would be an evening of stories and Rock and Roll; she then reflected on the recent passing of her long-time collaborator and good friend Tom Petty sharing stories of their time together throughout her two-and-a-half hour set. The Pretenders and Nicks will be at KeyArena, Seattle, Dec. 11.

The Trans-Siberian Orchestra kicked off the holiday season with two sold-out shows at the Mohegun Sun Arena, Uncasville, Conn., Nov. 26, wowing the crowds with pyrotechnics, giant video screens, lasers, faux falling snow and dazzling Christmas music. Both shows grossed a combined $771,000 with over 14,000 fans in attendance. The rock orchestra tells a story with their music titled The Ghosts of Christmas Eve; they use rock music as their inspiration while adding in elements of classical music and heavy metal. The visually stunning live event will be at the Jacksonville (Fla.) Veterans Memorial Arena Dec. 14.
 

HOT TICKETS is a weekly summary of the top acts and ticket sales as reported to VT PULSE. Following are the top 20 concerts and events, the top 5 in each seating capacity category, which took place between Nov. 7-Dec. 5.

Caesars Forum, a new $375 million convention center, will open in 2020.

Caesars Entertainment (Caesars) has committed to building a new major player in the Las Vegas convention scene. The $375-million facility will feature 300,000 sq. ft. of meeting space and be adjacent to Harrah’s Hotel & Casino and The Linq Hotel & Casino and will be called Caesars Forum.

“We know that we want more meetings business in town,” said Michael Massari, chief sales officer, Caesars Entertainment. “It’s a great customer for us; business travelers really contribute to our success as a company.”

Massari cited Harrah’s, The Linq and Flamingo Hotel, all owned by Caesars, all which currently have a limited amount of meeting space, as the impetus for the new convention center. “We wanted to build meeting space that those properties could enjoy the benefits from,” he said.

The 1.8-acre property owned by Caesars, is currently a parking lot and next to the decked-out High Roller Ferris wheel, also owned by the company. Even though Caesars owns the real estate, the deal is structured in a sell-and-lease-back construct where Caesars will sell the property to VICI Properties and lease it back.

Caesars will get a cash infusion of $1.14 billion from the sale, which will also include Caesars acquiring two properties — Hoosier Park Racing and Casino, Anderson, Ind.,  and Indiana Grand Racing and Casino, Shelbyville — and adding them to its portfolio.

“We expect the sale and leaseback will allow us to acquire and develop the convention center without increasing leverage,” said Caesars President and CEO Mark Frissora in a statement. “The acquisition of the adjacent land to Harrah’s and development of the convention center allows us to develop another important destination right in the middle of our center-Strip-footprint.”

The space will include “the two largest ballrooms ever built,” said Massari. The pillarless ballrooms will each be 108,000-sq.-ft. and will be outfitted with high-end carpeting, chandeliers and wall sconces. “The ballrooms will be massive and large enough to hold almost any event such as general sessions, breakouts, meal functions and exhibit space.” Two junior ballrooms will be 40,000 sq.-ft. each and several boardrooms will also be built. The outside plaza will be 100,000 sq. ft.

Construction will start at the end of the first quarter of 2018 and Ceasars Forum is slated to open in 2020. “We’re already taking reservations,” said Massari. Friedmutter Group and PENTA Building Group have been selected as the architect and general contractor, respectively. The building will cost $375 million and Massari said they are hoping to attract “meetings of all size. The objective was to build something large and flexible.”

The meeting space is being designed to gather 1,000-6,000 at a time, but Massari envisions meetings of thousands, hundreds or even 10 or 20 attendees. Concessions will be  run in-house by Caesars.

Reina Herschdorfer, director of marketing, meetings and events, Caesars, said that the company is “excited about getting into the convention center space.” She echoed Massari’s sentiments that the new space will be “for every size event” and expects the business to be split 50/50 between large and small events. “We have some customers that have outgrown our current meeting space and we really wanted to offer them a space.”

The latest technology will be a big part of the new venue, according to Herschdorfer. “We’ll have free WiFi, charging stations and everything the modern convention-goer expects.”

The project is expected to generate nearly 1,000 local construction-phase jobs and over 450 permanent jobs once completed.

Goldstar's Boost allows event organizers to buy prominent placement in e-blasts.

According to Jim McCarthy, founder and CEO, Goldstar, the number one challenge for the live entertainment industry is awareness. “Marketing is more fragmented than ever, making it harder and harder to get the word out,” said McCarthy. “People can’t buy tickets to something they don’t know is happening.”

McCarthy said that Goldstar’s data suggests that 80 percent of ticket buyers were unaware of the event they eventually purchased a ticket for on the discount ticket-buying platform.

Goldstar’s events are listed organically, based on an algorithm that uses previous purchase data. The service sends out emails on a daily, weekly or monthly basis depending on the preference of the customer. In that email, 15 events that are in proximity of the receiver are displayed.

“In big markets there are hundreds of shows that are geographically close,” said McCarthy. “The top 15  are determined by the algorithm which uses how long an event has been listed, user likes and dislikes and other factors to pick the 15 events listed on the e-blast.”

Goldstar’s new Boost product allows a client to “buy a better position in that list,” explained McCarthy. “We only boost a listing that’s already on your list. If your event is 18-down and you want to get into the 15 events we list in an email, Boost allows you to move your event up.”

It works like this: A client self-automates a boost by going onto the Goldstar platform and creating a campaign in the client portal. The supplier picks the number of emails they want to have their event boosted in, where geographically the boosts should be placed and how long they want the campaign to last. It costs $5 dollars per 1,000 boosts.

McCarthy said that boosting, much like an event organizer can do on Facebook, provides many benefits. “Event operators get prominent placement in our emails and get sent to likely buyers,” he said. “They can also target Goldstar members in additional markets, outside of the venue’s city, to suit long-term plans and tours.”

Center Theatre Group, Los Angeles, used the service to create awareness for their production of “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.”

Goldstar's Boost product increased awareness and sales for L.A.'s Ahmanson Theatre production of "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time."

“Our goal was to further increase awareness of the show which was in the middle of a successful run,” said Arie Levine, senior marketing manager, Center Theatre Group. “We wanted to finish the run on a high note and thought we’d try out Boost as a way to get there.”

“We determined a budget internally and picked how many days we wanted to run the boost. Setting up the boost was super easy,” she said. “Results were impressive. We saw sales go up dramatically the first day we did it and they continued to go up everyday we ran the boost.”

Goldstar also shared data with Levine. “We were featured in 302,291 emails; pageviews increased 45 percent during the boost and unique visits increased 31 percent.”

“At the end of the day, we sold more tickets compared to days without the boost,” she said. Center Theatre Group was so impressed with the results from their first boosting experience that used the system for their next four shows.

“We've definitely see it be a positive return on investment,” she said. “It’s a valuable tool.”

The Boost product was rolled out in August. McCarthy said that while Boost is still relatively new, “the revenue generated from the product is substantial already” and he expects that given time to create awareness of the product, and after proving the results to suppliers, he expects the revenue to be “a significant part of our future business.”

Goldstar has 5,000 venue partners. Their headquarters is in Pasadena, Calif., and the
15-year-old ticket discounter has about 100 employees.

Wortham Theatre Center, Houston, will repoen Sept. 1, 2018.

Wortham Theater Center, Houston,  has announced plans to reopen Sept. 1, 2018, only days after the one-year anniversary of when Hurricane Harvey made landfall in Texas and caused widespread flooding that led to extensive water-related damages to the performing arts center.

The Wortham Center, which was built in 1987 in downtown Houston’s Theater District, has been closed since Harvey struck. The venue holds two theaters and serves as the home for both the Houston Grand Opera and the Houston Ballet. The city of Houston owns the facility, and the Houston First Corporation operates it.

Peter McStravick, chief development officer for Houston First, said the venue’s importance to the area makes its recovery a top priority.

“The Wortham Center really is one of the cultural gems of the region and it’s very important to get it back up to speed,” McStravick said. “It’s taking lots of hours and lots of smart, dedicated and talented people to work on this, but Houston First is honored and committed to be a part of this work.”

The Wortham Center’s challenges are the result of flooding that saw 12 feet of water gather in the venue’s basement area. The basement contained all of the facility’s life safety systems and almost 30 percent of the air handling units. In addition, during the process of identifying the extent of the damage, workers found floodwater had permeated wall cavities in the basement and contaminated insulation. Structural steel columns in the basement also were compromised and insulation located inside the columns were contaminated. Finally, the majority of the electrical conduits located in the basement were damaged and will require replacement.

McStravick said the process of surveying and accounting for the damage the floodwaters caused has been a time-consuming one, complicated by the limited space in the basement that prevents a large group of workers from tackling the project simultaneously. Houston First previously had announced a best-case opening date of May 2018. As the scope of the damage became more clear, however, the organization pushed it back to September.

The Wortham Center largely escaped major repair needs to its performance areas. However, the flooding caused extensive damage to the Houston Grand Opera’s costume shop and wig and makeup departments, resulting in the loss of the majority of its wig stock and most of its footwear and millinery, said Perryn Leech, managing director of the Houston Grand Opera. In addition, Leech said, the company lost two vehicles. He estimated the opera’s total financial losses at approximately $6.6 million.

Both the Houston Grand Opera and the Houston Ballet were able to find alternative, temporary venues. The ballet is performing primarily at the Smart Financial Centre at Sugar Land, a concert hall outside of Houston, and the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, McStravick said. The opera was unable to find a venue that could both meet its technical needs and be available for the extended time it needed. Instead, the company built a temporary theater in an exhibit hall at the George R. Brown Convention Center, which Houston First also operates.

Leech said the opera was “thrilled” to find the temporary space in such difficult circumstances.

“We have been fortunate to relocate almost all of our season to this hall, which we have named HGO Resilience Theater, without changing or losing any performances,” Leech said. “We are still waiting to hear about the spring productions, but are hoping that we can stay in the GRB through that period.”  

McStravick said the Wortham Center was the large venue in Houston hit hardest by Harvey. Other large venues took some damages but were able to reopen. For instance, the Alley Theatre, an indoor theater located downtown, reopened Nov. 24. Jones Hall for the Performing Arts, which Houston First also operates, had water in its basement but was back to hosting performances in October. In addition, Houston First reopened the Theater District underground parking garages on Nov. 23 — floodwaters had filled the garage’s three levels with more than 270 million gallons of water.

Carolyn Campbell, director of communications for Houston First, said strong philanthropic and community support for the Wortham Center and the Houston arts community at large has provided a boost. Among other ongoing efforts, individuals and organizations have contributed to a recovery fund designated for arts programs in the area.

“I’ve just never seen the kind of cooperation and cohesiveness that I’ve seen after Harvey,” Campbell said. “It’s been an attitude of as one group goes, so goes the entire Theater District. It’s required everyone to work together and be exceptionally patient, and they’ve done that to help each other out.”

Leech said the opera has benefited from that type of community-mindedness through its travails.

“We have had tremendous support from our neighbors and colleagues in the cultural community,” Leech said. “The Hobby Center volunteered to host our computer servers and customer care team, and we were able to use rehearsal space in Bayou Place, Opera in the Heights, St. Mark’s Church, and Rice University’s Shepherd School, among others. Recently, one of our board members has given us the use of a building he owns that was formerly a YWCA. This is tremendously helpful for rehearsals and coachings.”

McStravick said it is too early to provide an estimate for the total cost of the recovery effort at the Wortham Center. The work will include identifying how floodwater created so much havoc and pursuing mitigation improvements that could help prevent a repeat of the event. McStravick said Houston First will consider whether it can make any improvements identified in its 2015 master plan while it is unable to stage performances, but he said the organization will not risk any nonessential projects that could delay the opening beyond Sept. 1.

“We don’t want to be sidelined by improvements that could take place afterward,” he said. “This work is about getting the opera and the ballet back in that building as fast as possible so that things are back to normal again.”

Nashville Predators put plan in place to control secondary market through mobile ticketing.

The word disheartening doesn’t quite do justice to the feeling players and staff of the Nashville Predators of the National Hockey League (NHL) felt when 9,000 fans of the opposing team descended upon Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, Tenn., for games in the 17,000-seat venue.

The Predators decided to do something about it.

“We were losing our home-ice advantage,” said Nat Harden, the team’s senior VP of ticket sales. “If we sell season-ticket packages to fans, we can maintain the home-ice advantage. We made a concerted effort not to resell to ticket brokers.”

Harden said that about four years ago the team saw the issues of ticket brokers buying up season tickets and reselling them to opposing fans. With Nashville a destination city, and the team’s venue located on Broadway, fans of teams other than Nashville were flocking to the arena and filling over half of it. “If you have a lot of tickets on the secondary market, it opens up the ability for opposing team fans,” Harden said. So, in 2015 the Predators formulated a plan and have moved from having one of the highest number of tickets available on the secondary market to next to last in the 31-team league. A more aggressive approach in 2017 has finished off a plan that now has Nashville with an average of 146 ticket listings per game, 64 percent below the NHL average.

The plan to remove ticket brokers from the Predators started with selling season tickets only to those the team knew. With 13,500—about 80 percent—of the building sold in a full-season equivalent, this first step made a difference, Harden said. Sales staff must gain manager approval before selling more than four season tickets to a single party and if someone from out of the area requests season tickets, the team researches who they are. “We want to make sure we are selling to people coming to the games,” Harden said.

Harden said it wasn’t easy for the team to come out to a building over half full of opposing team fans and it really devalued the brand to their own season-ticket holders. Having actual fans buying tickets eliminates brokers, allows the team to manage the price of tickets on the secondary market and helps the team control every single game.

The team also shifted from hard and paper tickets to season-ticket ID cards, helping reduce the deluge of tickets floating about without any way to track them. It also helped the team identify ticket brokers and remove them. But the final piece of the strategy came to play this season, as the team shifted to a fully mobile ticketing platform.

Going fully mobile allows the team to control how tickets get managed, such as not sending barcodes until 48 hours before the event and taking the resale button off the ticket for certain games (fans always have the option on those days to sell back the ticket or exchange it for a future game). “The fan base understands what we are trying to do and why we are doing it,” Harden said. “To build a home-ice advantage we had to build an atmosphere of 95-percent Predator fans.”

Moving fully mobile gives the team a more robust wealth of information about fans, as all fans must download the team app and input information in order to use tickets. Already this season the Predators database of fans has grown by over 20 percent. “They were probably going to our games in the past, but we didn’t know,” he said. The mobile strategy has also eliminated the need for long will-call lines and sped up entry into the venue.

“We have made huge strides,” Harden said. “Going in you hope that it works and you have a plan to be where we are at right now. I am really, really proud of where we are. We put together a plan to control the secondary market and to implement it to where we are now. We are very excited.”
 

A rendering of OVG's renovated KeyArena, Seattle, which cleared a giant hurdle and received city council approval of its MOU this week.

The Seattle City Council approved the memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the city and Oak View Group (OVG) to renovate KeyArena, Dec.4, by a vote of 7-1, with one absent voter. The new mayor, Jenny Durkin, and OVG Co-Founder and CEO Tim Leiweke, signed the MOU on Dec. 6, pushing the promise of implementation of the $660-million project further toward the finish line. (Full disclosure: OVG also owns Venues Today.)

The revitalization of KeyArena is step one in Seattle attracting a National Basketball Association (NBA) team and a National Hockey League (NHL) team to the city. Seattle’s former NBA team, the Sonics, left for Oklahoma City in 2008.

With the MOU signed, the deal between OVG and the city moves to the next phases, lease agreements, entitlement issues and permitting. Signing of the MOU does not guarantee OVG the right to start construction yet; among other necessary steps are completion of an environmental impact statement, community benefits agreement, and an agreement to integrate with other organizations housed at Seattle Center.

Still, “the city council vote was quite significant,” said Joe Mirabella, director of communications, Seattle office of economic development. “This clears the way for the KeyArena/Oak View Group deal to proceed.”

Mirabella said that with this hurdle overcome, the most likely outcome is the completion of the arena. “There’s very little in the way now that would derail the venue being built,” he said. “The next steps are mostly filling in the blanks and a lot of paperwork and filings like settling a lease agreement, going through the entitlement process, and putting all the permits in place.”

Mirabella believes this will take anywhere from six to eight months to accomplish. “Barring a 9.5 earthquake or one of the other worst-case-scenario stipulations in the MOU, the path from here is not perilous and we fully expect OVG will break ground in October 2018 and the new KeyArena will open its doors in Fall 2020.”

“On behalf of OVG, we want to thank the Seattle City Council, City staff, and City consultants and representatives for the cumulative work that signifies a monumental moment with today’s 7-1 vote,” said Leiweke in a statement. “We feel extremely good about the partnership between the City of Seattle and OVG and respect and applaud the City in its ability to be thoughtful, collaborative, and deal-focused throughout this process while maintaining the best interest of its citizens.

“The process over the last year serves as an example of the transparent public/private collaboration that has led to a great outcome that other municipalities will emulate,” he said. “We have enjoyed getting to know our neighbors in Seattle Center, Uptown, South Lake Union, Belltown and Queen Anne. We look forward to continuing our work with the community over the next year as we complete our long form agreements and full entitlement.  We will continue to be good partners and good neighbors and look forward to a collaborative and beneficial ongoing relationship will all community stakeholders.”

Mirabella said the deal was “great for the city of Seattle. Since the money to rebuild the arena is private money, with provisions for the city to revenue-share, it’s a win/win. The city gets to keep its promise that we are not moving backward and the renovated arena will surely have a huge, positive economic impact on the entire city.”

Under the agreement, Oak View Group will lease the arena from the city for 39 years. Further extensions are in place if OVG can land a NHL or NBA team, both of which are likely given OVG’s deep ties to the sporting world. OVG bringing more capital to the project will also kick in extensions.

Part of the MOU will see OVG contribute $40 million over its 39-year lease to a transportation fund to alleviate traffic congestion in the area, a pledge to retain some of the current staff, and construction of a skatepark.

In other Seattle venue news, Seattle Opera has unveiled plans for a $60-million facility to replace Mercer Arena, which was demolished last February.

The new building, which will be named the Seattle Opera at the Center, is expected to be four stories tall and house 105,000 sq.-ft. of space for offices, storage, scene assembly and community spaces.

A rendering of the new four-story  Seattle Opera at the Center. building.

One of the goals of the project is to create "a signature building that unlocks opera for all," said Seattle Opera General Director Aiden Lang. “Education and engagement are at the heart of Seattle Opera's mission.”

The opera is using about $14 million in public grants for the project with the rest of the money coming from private donations.

NBBJ is the architect on the project, Lease Crutcher Lewis is the general contractor and Shiels Obletz Johnsen is the project manager. Construction began in January 2017 and Seattle Opera at the Center is expected to move into their new home in 2019.

Rendering of the new Google offices next to Little Caesars Arena, Detroit.

While cities around the nation await word on whether they’ve won the rose to become the next Amazon hub, Detroit is celebrating Google’s announcement this week that it is moving its Michigan offices from suburban Birmingham to Detroit. The company’s new 100-person, 30,000-square foot office is slated to open in the spring next to Little Caesars Arena at 52 East Henry St.

“Google has officially signed a lease for new office space on East Henry Street alongside the Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Mich. The city of Detroit has a rich history of culture and innovation, and we’re excited to be a part of its world class talent and world class companies,” Google’s Birmingham co-site leads Danielle Russell and Guy Schueller said in a statement to Venues Today. “Our new space will not only provide room for future growth, but will also give us the opportunity to contribute to the dynamic economic and community activity happening in Detroit.”

The move is part of an ongoing effort led by Quicken Loans founder Dan Gilbert to revive the city’s downtown as part of the tech hub known as the Madison Block, which already includes businesses such as the Bizdom start-up incubator, Detroit Labs, Avalon Films and the architecture firm Neumann/Smith.

Renderings of the new site show the Mountain View, Calif.-based company’s signature colorful name splashed across the top of the building, with the lights of Little Caesars Arena shining in the background. The placement will give the leading search engine prime visibility for concertgoers as well as Red Wings and Pistons fans attending events at the gleaming new $829-million, 19,000-capacity building that effectively replaced both the Joe Louis Arena and the suburban Palace at Auburn Hills when it opened in early September.

“This exciting move by Google is another clear sign that, in The District Detroit, we’re building one of the best and most exciting places to live, work and play in the entire region,” said Christopher Ilitch, President/CEO of Ilitch Holdings Inc. in a statement. “Google joins other world-class organizations like the Detroit Pistons, the Detroit Red Wings, the Detroit Tigers, Olympia Entertainment, 313 Presents, the Mike Ilitch School of Business at Wayne State University, Little Caesars Pizza and others who are bringing new development, jobs and innovation to this critical area in our community. We welcome Google as the first of many new tenants expected to join The District Detroit in office, retail and residential developments.”

The 100-plus employees from Birmingham who focus on automotive ads and technical support will make the move downtown after the suburban office closes in spring 2018. 

Dennis Petrullo has resigned his post as GM, KFC Yum! Center, Louisville, Ky.

Dennis Petrullo.

Petrullo has helped run the arena since 2012. He was hired by AEG in 2009. When the group signed to manage the arena three years later, Petrullo was put in place as GM.

Richard Krezwick, SVP, AEG Facilities, will assume the interim position of general manager until a successor is named. A new general manager will be hired within 30 days, according to a statement from AEG’s Michael Roth.

Petrullo’s departure comes on the heels of the news that Moody's upgraded the KFC Yum! Center's bond rating.  Arena officials say that the improved rating will yield tens of millions in savings toward repaying its debt.

Bob Johnson, OABA; David Margulies, Margulies Communications Group; Alicia Shoults, Ohio State Fair; and E.J. Dean, Fiesta Shows, moderator.

REPORTING FROM LAS VEGAS — The Fireball ride accident in July at the 2017 Ohio State Fair, which killed one and injured four, made international headlines this fair season. The mantra from those who lived the tragedy from the business end was “be ready” and know “this is your business,” take care of your key audience first.

While the police and fire departments and the governor’s office are dealing with the bigger issues and the media, the venue should be focusing on informing their business partners and peers as to what is happening.

It was a by-the-book crisis communication effort from the get-go, but simply beyond comprehension until you’ve lived through it, said Alicia Shoults, Ohio State Fair, who spoke at the International Association of Fairs & Expositions convention here Nov. 26-30.

“We had a safety meeting two weeks before this happened [on opening day of the fair] and, as a result of that meeting, our first aid, highway patrol and off-site emergency services were all on the same radio channel, so everyone was told at once,” Shoults recalled.

It is amazing how quickly things happen, Shoults said. “We knew we had to notify social media,” she said of first responses, because everyone on site had their cellphone out and was taking pictures. The chatter was deafening. “We needed some acknowledgement from an official source.”

She also advised others involved in tragic incidents like this to “stay in your lane, your area of expertise. Don’t step on others’ toes.” The investigation into the cause of the accident and details on the injured, that’s for the police department, not the fair.

At the initial press conference, the fair kept a check-in sheet so they could follow up with media on hand and tied all sound into a multibox so there was only one mike at the podium.

“It’s important to express grief, but not take ownership of that grief,” Shoults said. “It’s not our turn to grieve; it’s the family’s turn. It’s not about us.”

One of the things Shoults needed most was people. As the national media descended on Columbus, she was calling on friends and colleagues around the industry to help. “I never realized I’d need so many people just to wrangle the media.”

She found it best to keep crisis files on Dropbox, everything from talking points to clippings and background, for easy access for multiple needs. She also advised colleagues facing crisis management to be cognizant of all advertising and promotional materials that are out there. “The Fireball was in our TV ads, albeit for less than a second, and that had to change.”

To accommodate the press, they immediately established a media staging area in a parking lot that had a view of rides for TV shots, but “not the shot,” not the Fireball. They surrounded the Fireball with tractor-trailers so the view was obstructed.

She understood the need to “feed the beast,” the media has a job to do, so they established a website, OhioStateFair.com/media-fireball. It’s still up.

They took the press on a tour of the grounds en masse the day after the accident. “Everyone tried to run off and get other shots,” she said. On day 2, the press tour was a golf cart tour. The goal for the fair was fair and equal coverage for everyone.

“Be aware of anniversaries (one month, two months, one year) and events,” she added. The memorial for the deceased was on Day 5 of the fair and the funeral was on Day 6. The fair was lowkey. No decision has been made yet on what to do when the 2018 fair opens, whether the moment of silence will be on day one because it was opening day in 2017, or day two, the actual one-year anniversary.

David Margulies, The Margulies Communications Group, advised managers to enlist a third voice in issues like this. For the Ohio State Fair, that was the Outdoor Amusement Business Association (OABA). Bob Johnson, OABA president, said he couldn’t get off the phone for a week after the ride accident.

“It was incredible how fast it went viral worldwide,” Johnson said.

Johnson’s first reaction was to contact the carnival owner and Margulies, review the Industry Safety Statistics and Carnival Rides website and develop a spiel for the media calls. It’s important to know that American Society for Testing and Materials standards become regulation standards and inspections are based on ASTM standards.

This was a wake up call, as any accident would be, and the industry is still looking at all equipment and how it might relate to the issue here and many states had to get out in front of the issue, which impacted fairs all down the line post-Ohio.

Margulies added that employees need to know what to do when someone puts a cellphone in front of their face during a crisis. He recommended having a “what to do if…” list ready to distribute in case of an accident. “To the media, anyone who works for you is a spokesperson,” Margulies said.

He also advises his clients against taking center stage. “In a crisis like this, you don’t need to say anything. The police and fire departments are trained to deal with that. You make sure they have the information, but it’s not your turn to hold a news conference.”

It is your turn to reach out to your key audience, from vendors to insurance companies to other fairs and carnivals, he said. “There needs to be strong follow-up.” Other rides were shut down worldwide and the manufacturers were making modifications to similar rides.

The industry is now looking at new testing protocols to combat internal corrosion, which was determined to be the cause, Margulies said. The rides were inspected according to current safety protocols and passed. It’s important to use third-party experts to corroborate those claims.

It was determined early on that there was no operator error “and we focused on that, what the investigations said,” Margulies said. There will always be false rumors to combat, particularly given the social media aspect of news today.

First and foremost, “the focus in on keeping your business, not going after every reporter you don’t like,” Margulies said. “Your business is much more important to you than the media.”

The ride is still shut down, four months later.