The exterior of the Palace at Aubern Hills, Mich. (Photo credit: Detroit Pistons file photos)

When a National Basketball Association team leaves its home arena for another, it’s as sentimental as a couple leaving a house where they raised their kids.

Such was the feeling on April 10 when the Detroit Pistons played their last home game at The Palace at Auburn Hills (Mich.). Although the Pistons lost 105-101 to the Washington Wizards, it was still a memorable moment for the team and those who’ve worked at the venue for the last three decades.

The Pistons soon will move into the newly built home they will share with the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League in downtown Detroit. The new 21,000-seat venue that cost $733 million to construct is called Little Caesars Arena and opens in September.

Long-time Pistons sportscaster George Blaha said he’s sad to see the team leave the Palace, but the joint venture with the Red Wings makes geographical and financial sense. HOK is the architect.

“If you’re a family, and the husband and wife are both involved in the financial decision-making, you’re probably going to make better decisions with two people involved,” Blaha said, noting that the same goes for the Pistons and Red Wings coming together under one roof. “They’ll be making some overall marketing decisions and promotion decisions and fan decisions that will benefit both teams.”

Blaha has experienced many unforgettable moments at the 24,000-seat Palace that opened in 1988.

“When the Pistons blasted the Lakers in game five of five, the place went absolutely bananas,” he said. “When they started to pile up the points, the noise started and it never stopped.”

Many others have fond memories of the Palace, including Chief Operating Officer of Rossetti, Dave Richards. Rossetti was the architect for the Palace, and Richards was on the decision-making team when the arena was built.

Interior of The Palace at Auburn Hills. (Photo credit: Detroit Pistons file photos)

“We began designing it very late in 1985, and in 1986 we were in construction. The building had some really unique features at the time,” Richards said.

For instance, they put padding on the seats, unlike other stadiums and arenas in the '80s that had plastic seats or benches. Also, the arena had 50 percent more women’s facilities than required by code, he said.

“We did a lot of things to really improve the fan experience,” he said, highlighting that they put suites in row 16 of the arena, which was unheard of at that time.

Perhaps the most notable experience for Richards during his time with the Palace was when he had to convince Sting — who played the opening concert at the venue in 1988 — to get on the grid that’s 10-feet under the floor and raise to the stage.

“I ended up having to talk Sting into going on stage and offered to sit there with him,” Richards said. “That was a pretty cool thing.”

Although the transition to a new venue is bittersweet for many, moving the team downtown makes sense on many levels.

“The downtown location will be centrally located,” Blaha said, adding that it will be easier for people across the region to travel to games or concerts. “If they don’t want to go to a basketball game, it’ll be because they don’t want to go to a basketball game, not because of where the arena is located.”

Right now, fans who live down river and in other parts of Detroit, have a difficult time getting to the Palace due to where it’s located in the city, he said.

“I’m excited about moving downtown and doing something for Detroit but sad we’re walking out of what’s been the very best building in America,” Blaha said. “It’s been one of the best parts of what’s been a dream job for me, broadcasting for the NBA and broadcasting for the Pistons and having a front row seat for it.”

Billy Joel playing to a sell-out crowd at the opening of the newly renovated Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

When Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum closed in August 2015, Long Island native Billy Joel gave the beloved venue a rousing sendoff. Almost two years later on April 5, 2017, the Piano Man was on hand once more to christen the newly renovated arena. Joel’s three-hour performance was his thirty-third concert at the Coliseum, and he played 33 songs to mark the occasion.

Billy Joel at the opening of the renovated Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

“Our sold-out show from legendary Long Islander Billy Joel on April 5 was a historic moment for the Coliseum,” said Nick Vaerewyck, senior director of programming for NYCB LIVE, home of Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. “The energy in the building was electric, and we are proud to be able to show fans the hard work that has gone into renovating the venue over the past 20 months. We are looking forward to the great programming lined up at the Coliseum in the coming weeks, including Metallica and the final Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus performances ever.”

Since the arena’s reopening, there has been a major event almost every night. Stevie Nicks, Idina Menzel and Marc Anthony entertained audiences over the last week and, on April 10, the Coliseum played host to WWE Monday Night Raw. Upcoming visitors include the Harlem Globetrotters, Def Leppard and The Weeknd. In May, the Coliseum will also host the last hurrah of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. A full list of events is available below.

First opened in 1972, Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum is located in Uniondale on Long Island. Until 1977, the arena served as the home of the New York Nets of the American Basketball Association (and later of the National Basketball Association). The coliseum also provided home ice advantage to the National Hockey League’s New York Islanders up until 2015. Beginning with the 2017-2018 season, the venue will become home court for the Long Island Nets, the NBA Development League affiliate of the Brooklyn Nets.

Over the last two years, the 416,000-square-foot coliseum underwent $165 million of exterior and interior renovations. The original building was constructed at a cost of $32 million ($186 million when adjusting for inflation).

Exterior of  Nassau Veterans Memorial Colisuem.

Designed by SHoP Architects, the renovated building’s intricate aluminum fin façade pays homage to Long Island’s history as the birthplace of the aviation industry. In total, the 960 fins are comprised of 4,654 unique segments. Meanwhile, the venue’s skin evokes iconic imagery including Long Island’s sand dunes and boardwalks. An astounding 50,000 square feet of terrazzo flooring, 52,000 square feet of tile, and 10,000 gallons of paint were used for the project.

Gensler served as the architect for the venue’s interior renovation. A redesigned main entrance, all new seating, and revamped concessions and bathrooms will enhance the guest experience. From a sustainability perspective, the building stepped into modernity with the installation of LED lights, new windows and doors (to improve thermal performance), and waterless urinals. Fans will also enjoy access to high-speed Wi-Fi, improved cellular service for all major carriers, and an enlarged high-definition LED scoreboard.

The Artist’s Quarters presented by Apollo Jets are private and separate from the press and production areas, granting visiting performers an intimate experience and respite from the chaos of the tour. Accommodations include a Residential Style Suite, available in a Manhattan Modern or Hamptons Chic theme; a Wellness Room and Fitness Center; an Artist Living Room and a Promoter’s Lounge.

Premium areas at Nassau Coliseum include a 4,152-square-foot VIP club, featuring two large bars; high-top tables; banquette seating, and a four-acre outdoor plaza, which will be used for events and festivals. Additionally, the Blue Moon Beer Garden on the main concourse will feature expanded food and beverage selections, such as Umberto’s Pizza, which will have a large wood-burning pizza oven. Through the Long Island Taste program (patterned after Barclays Center’s Brooklyn Taste), Nassau Coliseum will offer authentic food and beverage from local restaurants and vendors.

The Coliseum can accommodate mid-size audiences for a variety of events.

• Concerts: up to 16,000
• Basketball: 14,500
• MMA/Boxing: 14,500
• Hockey: 13,900
• Theater: 4,500

There are also eight designated seats that will remain unused at all times to honor Prisoners of War and those Missing in Action; the five branches of the U.S. military (Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force and Coast Guard); first responders, including firefighters, law enforcement and emergency medical service members; and those who lost their lives on Sept.11, 2001, including more than 500 Long Islanders.

The Veterans Memorial, a dark granite oval on the southeast corner of the plaza, features water flowing along its surface, with a monument emerging at the center where National Guard honors the veterans with an eternal flame.

It’s been a long wait, but the gorgeous venue has been restored to its glory. Nassau Coliseum will undoubtedly rejuvenate Long Island as an iconic social and cultural hub. In the words of Billy Joel, “she’s got a way about her.”

Upcoming Events include:

• Def Leppard, April 15
• Monster Jam Series, 4 events, April 21, 22 & 23
• Barbra Streisand , May 4
• Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, May 12-15, May 19-21
• Metallica, May 17
• Barry Manilow, May 25
• The Weeknd, June 3
• Maxwell, June 10
• New Kids on the Block with Paula Abdul, July 7
• J. Cole, Aug. 5
• Roger Waters, co-founder of the rock band Pink Floyd, Sept. 15 & 16
• Professional Bull Riders: Built Ford Tough Series, Sept. 23 & 24
• Bruno Mars, Oct. 5
• Stony Brook vs. Maryland, Nov. 11
• Villanova vs. Hofstra on Dec. 22
• MAAC College Basketball Tripleheader on Jan. 27, 2018

Craig Hassall

Craig Hassall has been appointed CEO of the Royal Albert Hall, London. Prior to this, he was the chief executive of Opera Australia, the national opera company. Prior to Opera Australia, he worked in London for almost nine years, first as CEO of English National Ballet, the national touring ballet company of the UK.

Following this, Hassall was chief operating officer of Raymond Gubbay Ltd., responsible for new business and collaborative ventures in the commercial field of classical music, opera and ballet. He also consulted on cultural aspects of the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Hassall was awarded an AM of the Order of Australia for services to the arts in the Australia Day Honours 2016. He is currently on the board of Centre for Recent Drawing (C4RD), London, and the London International Festival of Theatre (LIFT).

Hassall replaces Chris Cotton who left his post after seven and a half years.
 

(Above)A rendering of the Oak View Group’s KeyArena plan shows the bowl will be 15 feet deeper than the current one to create added seating. (Photo Credit: Oak View Group); (Below) A rendering of Seattle Partner's KeyArena plan shows the exterior of their proposed rebuild. (Photo Credit: Seattle Partners)

Two of the biggest players in the venue world submitted the only viable bids to the City of Seattle to win the contract to rebuild KeyArena by yesterday’s (April 12) deadline. The Request For Proposals process started only last January.

The Oak View Group (OVG), led by Tim Leiweke, former CEO of Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG) and Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, and mega-music manager Irving Azoff, has unwrapped a $564-million package. Seattle Partners, an alliance between Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG) and Hudson Pacific Properties, has proposed a $520-million pitch for the renovation. (Full disclosure: Venues Today LLC is a subsidiary of OVG.)

The proposals will be under scrutiny for the next two months, with a choice to be presented to the mayor of Seattle by the end of June. A third, amended proposal to build an arena at a different location, brought by Sodo Group, is also before the city council for a decision before the end of the year.

Both KeyArena groups have plans to lure National Basketball Association (NBA) and National Hockey League (NHL) teams to Seattle but will commit to the project without any assurances from either sports league.

Seattle was previously the home of the NBA’s SuperSonics who played home games at KeyArena, originally known as Seattle Center Coliseum, for 33 of the franchise's 41 seasons in Seattle.

The OVG proposal calls for a 660,000 sq.-ft. venue. It will have 18,350 seats for basketball, 17,100 seats for hockey and a concert capacity of 17,100. The completion date would be October 2020. OVG’s arena expansion method is to place the lower arena bowl and floor 15 feet underground to create a 660,000-sq.-ft. blueprint.

OVG’s bid comes with $350 million in financing from Goldman Sachs, which guaranteed up to $400 million, with the additional $150 million coming from OVG and its equity partner Madison Square Garden (MSG). Concert giant Live Nation has also pledged financial support and Delaware North has signed on as the concessionaire.

Seattle Partners plan envisions a 600,000 sq.-ft. facility. Its projected NBA capacity would be 18,113. For hockey, it would seat 17,120 and a concert capacity would be 19,202. The company projects it would take 24-26 months to complete after approval. Seattle Partners development would expand the roof over the south side of the arena.

Seattle Partners financing relies on its partners AEG and Hudson Pacific Properties to come up with the cash, although they do plan to ask the city to participate in the form of public bonding to attain tax advantages.

OVG’S PLAN

“We believe that Seattle is a top-10 music market and the fact that they have not had an arena update since 1995 makes them badly in need of a new state-of-the-art music venue and one that can bring back the NBA and recruit the NHL,” said Lance Lopes, OVG, director of special projects. “We look at this as a tremendous opportunity to do all of those things at one time.”

“We first and foremost are excited about doing something in Seattle Center and maintaining the historic nature of the building,” he said. “It’s a special place in Seattle’s heart dating back to the World’s Fair in 1962. What’s special is that we are going to build a new arena under the existing roof.”

Features of the OVG bid are a revolutionary two-scoreboard system, one sitting  over each end of the arena, and Lopes envisions this as the new standard that will replace traditional center-hung scoreboards. An atrium at one end of the arena called the Millennial Area, where there will be a bar and people circulating, “will have a spectacular view of the Space Needle. It’s going to be a pretty cool feature,”added Lopes.

OVG brought in ICON and Populous as partners to design and build the arena. “It will take 20 months to complete the building and we hope to be open in October 2020,” he said.

Lopes believes OVG has assembled the most powerful team that’s ever been put together for a proposal. “With Live Nation on board, we will have a leg-up on content,” he said.

Lopes is also proud of the community support that OVG has built into their bid. “OVG has pledged over $10 million to tackle teen homelessness through a group called Youth Care. We’ve also offered internships and training and we’ll bring all the things we can to help them solve this critical issue.”

As far as delivering an NBA and NHL team, Lopes said, “We’re not getting ahead of the franchise commissioners. We understand we need to build an arena before we can get a team. We continue to communicate with them on a regular basis and when they are ready to expend, we’ll be ready and well-positioned.”

AEG’S PROPOSAL

Aaron Pinkus is spokesman for the Seattle Alliance. “This is a unique opportunity,” he said. “It’s the best location in a great city for a world-class arena that is also a civic asset.”

“KeyArena has a great story and history. Our proposal will make it not only a great music venue but also up to the standards for a prospective NBA and NHL franchise in the future.”

“We’re looking at a $520-million budget and it should take about two years to complete,” he said. “We plan to take advantage of the historic rooflines of KeyArena and our proposal takes advantage of the ’12 man’ (the fan is the 12th man) concept of Seattle. There’s a great culture of intimate, loud, dynamic fan experiences here.”

“Seattle Partners members clearly bring the most experience to urban arena developments,” said Pinkus. “AEG has been in Seattle a long time. Hudson owns a lot of property here and owns and runs two other music facilities in Seattle. We have a deep bench of local partners to help, including Sellen Construction, Nelson/Nygaard who will consult on transportation, Gensler Architecture and Rossetti Associates.”

SODO STILL IN THE GAME

A third player in the KeyArena stakes is entrepreneur Chris Hansen who has proposed abandoning the KeyArena site altogether and wants to build a new venue in a different location. Hansen’s Sodo Group’s proposal was shot down by the City Council last May after public outcry over its call for over $200 million in public financing. Sodo Group has drafted a new proposal, without city financing, that must be voted on by the council by the end of the year.

The unique situation has not been lost on city officials. “We’re thrilled by the fact that there are three different groups willing to invest multimillions of dollars in the City of Seattle,” said Brian Surratt, director of the Seattle Economic Office of Development.

“KeyArena has been a great venue for us for music and other entertainment.” he said. “The Seattle Storm play there and we have college basketball and about a hundred other events. What this opportunity presents is an opportunity for the city to re-imagine KeyArena as a facility that meets NBA and NHL standards.”

“We’re excited that the two leading giants in this space agree,” he said. “Each are willing to invest over $500 million to go down that path and we can take KeyArena to the next level with these partners. It’s astonishing that these groups were able to get the architectural concepts, financing, operations and bring in their own partners in only four months.”

“Both proposals are really impressive and do an amazing job of preserving the look and feel and roof of the building,” he said. “Both will accommodate the NBA and NHL and will make this a premier entertainment facility.”

Sturratt did want to acknowledge that two graduate students from the University of Washington submitted a proposal as well. “We got a kick out of their proposal but, of course, it had no funding attached.”

THE PROCESS NOW

Surratt said the process from here starts with internal teams from the city looking at the proposals including transportation and community benefits. The next step is for an outside panel, comprised of local civil and business leaders, to examine the proposals.

The outside council will be led by former Sonics coach Lenny Wilkens. The other nine members are Jan Levy, chair of the Seattle Center Advisory Committee; Deborah Frausto, KeyArena subcommittee chair of the Seattle Uptown Alliance; Nicole Grant, executive secretary of the King County Labor Council; restaurateur Ethan Stowell, music executive Megan Jasper, business leader Ollie Garrett, former pro hockey player Todd Humphrey, architect Rico Quirindongo and Jill Nishi, chief of staff for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

An open house is scheduled for May 11 where anyone in the community can question representatives from OVG and Seattle Partners at KXP radio station, which is next door to KeyArena.

Following the open house, the community panel will give Surratt, the city’s budget director and the director of Seattle Center their feedback and advice. The trio will then ultimately deliver a recommendation to Seattle Mayor Ed Murray by the end of June.

The Mayor will then make the final call. If he picks either OVG or Seattle Partners, lease negotiations will start with the victor and the result of that process will be submitted to the city council for a vote.

“If they vote ‘yes’ we’ll start permitting, transportation planning and then speed along to groundbreaking,” he said.

Both groups addressed increasing the number of loading docks in their proposals and both tackle traffic and parking around KeyArena with a monorail upgrade and rideshare solutions. OVG’s parking plan is to install an 850-car parking garage, while the Seattle Partners say they will subsidize $5 million for improvements and expansion of the current city transportation links.

Both groups have deep ties to both the NBA and NHL that could help them secure NBA and NHL franchises.

Half of the NHL’s 30 teams are part of OVG’s Arena Alliance; Leiweke was part of the NHL executive committee for the Toronto Raptors. He also had four-percent equity in AEG, which operates Staples Center, Los Angeles, where the Lakers play. Florida Panthers Executive Chairman Peter Luukko is co-chairman of the OVG Arena Alliance. OVG’s proposed concessionaire Delaware North, owned by Jeremy Jacobs, is chairman of the NHL’s board of governors.

AEG has built or operates many NHL teams, including the Los Angeles Kings, and hockey arenas, including Staples Center, Los Angeles, and Hudson Pacific Properties is owned by Victor Coleman, who has made it known he wants to bring an NHL team to Seattle. AEG has also built and/or manages numerous NBA venues and is part-owner of the Los Angeles Lakers.

Rendering of the exterior of the new Albany (N.Y.) Capital Convention Center.

The hospitality industry in Albany, N.Y., is breaking out champagne glasses to celebrate the opening of the city’s new convention center. A ribbon-cutting ceremony takes place March 1.

The new Albany Capital Center has been years in the making and to see it come to fruition is an exciting accomplishment for those close to the project.

“I’m excited to say the least,” said Doug McClaine, general manager of the center.

The $78-million convention center will have all the bells and whistles of a new structure, including programmable LED lighting that can be configured for any new events. 

Rendering of the interior of Albany (N.Y.) Capital Convention Center.

It also will have a 22,000-sq.-ft. ballroom, 13,500 sq. ft. of pre-function space and 9,200 square feet of meeting space across six rooms.

SMG will manage the convention center and catering services will be provided by Mazzone Hospitality.

Perhaps the most dynamic aspect of the opening of the Albany Capital Center is the fact that it completes a much bigger project.

The convention center is a part of the Capital Complex, which is a conglomeration of four venues, that all are connected via heated walkways in downtown Albany.

The four venues make up a total of 150,000 sq. ft. of space and is the largest complex of its kind in upstate New York, McClaine said, highlighting that the complex is within walking distance of restaurants, hotels, shops, art galleries, night clubs and museums.

“They really put a lot of thought into this facility,” McClaine said. “It’s truly a multipurpose space.”

The ballroom has 26-ft. ceilings — a design that makes it possible to turn the room into basketball or volleyball courts, or it could just be used for dinner space. Additionally, the design, the bandwidth, is top of the line and the audio-visual system has 4K standards.

The goal was to make sure the building’s structure and components to be relevant beyond 2017, McClaine said.

“We can brand any event into anything you want with our LED lighting,” he added.

The convention center is being paid for and operated by the Albany Convention Authority, which gets its funding from the state. The Albany Capital Center was approved by the New York legislature and governor.

“We’ve had a sales team in place for a year, selling the space,” McClaine said.

Its neighboring Times Union Center — Albany’s big arena — is in the process of getting a $29-million facelift that’s been broken into two phases, with the first one being the completion of a new atrium with waterfalls and LED light displays in April, said Bob Belber, SMG regional general manager.

The arena seats up to 15,000 people at sporting events and up to 17,000 for other events.

Albany County owns the arena and a lodging tax collected through the county and state is paying for both the arena and the convention center.

“The economic impact to the area is going to be outstanding,” Belber said.

On March 1, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo will commence the ribbon-cutting and release the economic impact figures, Belber said.

Last December, it was announced that the American Hockey League team, the Devils, are leaving Albany and relocating to Binghamton due to declining  attendance.

“At one time, the hockey team had 6,300 attendees per game,” Belber said, highlighting that in recent years, that figure had dropped to around 3,000 or so per game. “I understand the reasons the Devils had to make a move to Binghamton.”

He sees the move as a positive in terms of a profit verses loss standpoint, as the arena was losing roughly $200,000 a year having the Devils play at the arena. All the while, Belber would have to turn away weekend business 85 percent of the time since the hockey team was playing.

The arena will now book the weekends with concerts and family shows, which is projected to help the arena profit roughly $500,000 a year.

“From the profit and loss side of it, the client is going to be much better off financially,” Belber said. 

The new convention center and the renovations at Times Union Center will literally shine bright from all the changes, he noted.

On the outside atrium of the arena, two 15-foot-high LED video boards will play music videos and other entertainment for passersby, giving downtown Albany a “Times Square” feel, Belber said.

The weekend of March 4, the convention center also will have a basketball tournament, a craft beer fest and a mac and cheese fest.

Legends are people who listen to, challenge and support their cohorts. They lead by example. They are inclusive and inspiring.
Susan O’Malley, who worked for the late Abe Pollin, founder of Monumental Sports & Entertainment, Washington, D.C.; and Peter Luukko, who worked for the late Ed Snider, founder of Comcast Spectacor, were often hilarious and more than a little self-revealing as they talked about working for legends over decades, day to day, during SEVT.
Abe Pollin was an awesome philanthropist. He would read in the newspaper about someone who had no car to get to work and would call Susan to buy that person a car.
He built two arenas with his own money, something Ed Snider did as well. Susan recalled the trip to a cornfield in Landover, Md., where Abe said, “I’m going to build the best arena in the country right here.” That was Capital Centre. And he did it again 20 years later, taking her to a crossing in downtown D.C. where you rolled through stoplights for fear of carjackers, and said the same thing. Isn’t this a great place for an arena?
Ed Snider always encouraged the entrepreneurial spirit in others. Peter recalled the summer ribfest he tried at Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, that lost $30,000 the first year, $90,000 the second. Ed declared his love of the ribfest both times. He did not want to quench Peter’s entrepreneurial spirit.
And it paid off. To get people to come to Wells Fargo Center early during the hockey playoffs, Peter and the Flyers created a block party, complete with those same rib restaurants, those same cool bands. Each time, they made hundreds of thousands of dollars. “Sometimes your failure is the root of your next success,” Peter told the Sport, Entertainment and Venues Tomorrow crowd in Columbia,S.C.
Legends have big personalities and big quirks. Asked the most difficult thing in working for their particular legend, Peter quipped: “His four wives.” Every time Ed remarried, Peter had to redecorate the Director’s Room.
Susan said they secretly called Abe “Mr. Magoo.” He liked to play the dumb blond, pretending he wasn’t the smartest one in the room even when he was. He taught her to keep her eye on the ball. “I can get a little passionate, a little crazy, and he would say, “‘End game, end game.’”
Asked when they personally knew they loved the business, Susan admitted to being a fan of the National Anthem, not just the song and sentiment, but that moment in time. “I saw the National Anthem 1,018 times; I never missed it. I loved that moment because I would look around and think every sign, every person, every giveaway — that had been my job and this had come together,” Susan said.
That story prompted Peter to share that he plays over and under for $10 with his hockey GM — would the National Anthem go over two minutes, three seconds? The longest ever was 2:20.
God grant you many years to enjoy the meaningful moments, the Anthems of our biz.

LEAH BEASLEY
ASSOCIATE ATHLETIC DIRECTOR, MARKETING AND FAN ENGAGEMENT, MISSISSIPPI STATE UNIV.
CURRENT CITY: Starkville, Miss.
HOMETOWN: Ruston, La.
UNIVERSITY: Louisiana Tech, Ruston.
FIRST JOB IN THE INDUSTRY: Athletic marketing GA and then assistant athletic director/marketing and game management at Louisiana Tech.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PART OF THE JOB: Making the fans and student athletes happy.
WHAT WOULD YOU BE DOING IF YOU WEREN'T DOING THIS: Leading tours on a catamaran in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.
MENTOR: Scott Stricklin: he embodies and embraces all of the qualities of a great leader.
FREE TIME PURSUITS: Walk my dog, Tayeaux, to the river or lake and go boating and waterskiing.
TOP SONG ON YOUR PLAYLIST RIGHT NOW: Something by Lauren Daigle.
MOST EMBARRASSING SONG ON YOUR PLAYLIST RIGHT NOW: “Call Me Maybe” by Carly Rae Jepsen.
WHAT WOULD PEOPLE BE SURPRISED TO LEARN ABOUT YOU: I eat everybody’s leftovers. They call me Leftover Leah.
BEST ADVICE EVER RECEIVED: Be yourself.
IF YOU COULD HAVE AN ENDLESS SUPPLY OF ANYTHING, WHAT WOULD IT BE: Rocky Road ice cream.
BIGGEST GUILTY PLEASURE: Taco Bell.
FAVORITE LIVE EVENT YOU'VE ATTENDED: Indigo Girls in Atlanta at Lilith Fair and then again at Duling Hall, Jackson, Miss.
DESIRED SUPER POWER: To fly.

MALU BARRIOS
DIRECTOR OF EVENT SERVICES, ICC SYDNEY
CURRENT CITY & HOMETOWN: Sydney, Australia
UNIVERSITY: Univ. of the Philippines, Quezon City.
FIRST JOB IN THE INDUSTRY: Banquet sales executive, The Manila Hotel.
HOW DID YOU GET YOUR CURRENT JOB: Progression within AEG Ogden. Prior to my current job, I opened and managed the Darwin (Australia) Convention Centre for eight years. Then I moved to Sydney to run the Sydney Exhibition Centre at Glebe Island, which was the interim venue that hosted Sydney’s trade and consumer exhibitions during the build of ICC Sydney.
YOUR FAVORITE PART OF THE JOB: The people that I deal with – clients, stakeholders, suppliers or our team. I learn something new every day.
WHAT WOULD YOU BE DOING IF YOU WEREN'T IN YOUR JOB: Running my own bed and breakfast.
WHAT DID YOU THINK YOU WOULD DO WHEN YOU WERE A KID: Become a nun.
WHAT DO YOU DO IN YOUR FREE TIME: Stand up paddle boarding, walking my dog and discovering Sydney.
ONE-DAY ESCAPE: Leura, a little town in the World Heritage-listed Blue Mountains, 90 minutes from Sydney.
TOP SONG ON YOUR PLAYLIST RIGHT NOW: “Stronger” by Kelly Clarkson.
MOST EMBARRASSING SONG ON YOUR PLAYLIST RIGHT NOW: “Even Now” by Barry Manilow.
WHAT WOULD PEOPLE BE SURPRISED TO LEARN ABOUT YOU: I am really an introvert.
BEST ADVICE  EVER RECEIVED: Have a vision for everything you do. Learn how to compromise along the way, but never lose sight of that vision. It’s okay to make mistakes.

OTTO BENEDICT
SVP & GM OF FACILITIES, LA FOOTBALL CLUB
CURRENT CITY: Redondo Beach, Calif.
HOMETOWN: Pasadena, Calif.
UNIVERSITY: California Polytechnic, Pomona; California State Long Beach.
FIRST JOB IN THE INDUSTRY: Event operations associate at Wasserman Media Group, where I broke down events for the Los Angeles Avengers Arena Football team.
HOW DID YOU GET YOUR CURRENT JOB: I got a job with AEG at Home Depot Center, which is now StubHub Center in Carson. I left AEG to go to work with a local event company and that all helped me land the new job with LAFC.
ONE-DAY ESCAPE: Princeville, Kauai, Hawaii.
TOP SONG ON YOUR PLAYLIST RIGHT NOW: Anything by Chris Stapleton.
MOST EMBARRASSING SONG ON YOUR PLAYLIST RIGHT NOW: “Ice, Ice, Baby” by Vanilla Ice. I have no shame about it; I turn it up loud when I hear it.
FAMOUS PERSON IN HISTORY YOU WOULD LIKE TO MEET: The designer of the Roman Colosseum.
WHAT WOULD PEOPLE BE SURPRISED TO LEARN ABOUT YOU: I have a huge appreciation for art and live theater.
BEST ADVICE EVER RECEIVED: Do what’s best for the building. Today I turn it into ‘do what’s best for the club.’

Optimization is prevalent in the industry today and the venues Down Under are no exception.
Australia’s Top Stops are leveraging purchasing power, customer service and labor to stay competitive in what can be a challenging marketplace.
One example is Qudos Bank Arena, located in Sydney Olympic Park, which has reviewed supplier and service provider agreements throughout the year, concentrating on contract rates and service standards.
“This has resulted in improved methodologies and for more [competitive] rates to be negotiated,” said Steve Hevern, the arena’s general manager. “Leveraging the purchasing power of the group will be looked at in 2017, in a bid to attain optimal rates and enhanced sponsorship opportunities at the arena via such partnerships.”
The review comes on the heels of Qudos Bank being launched as the arena’s naming rights sponsor in April 2016 and a subsequent rebrand that was rolled out for the remainder of last year. In addition, a new website is planned for 2017.
“This includes new interactive functionality, an improved layout and a user friendly design that is fully optimized for mobile phones and tablets to ensure that the user experience will be substantially improved,” said Hevern.

HIGHEST GROSSING SHOWS
Australia’s industry climate was not optimal in 2016, with Qudos Bank Arena’s highest grossing event for the fiscal year 2016 being the 2015 Netball World Cup, which grossed $2,311,610.
“Revenues were down in 2016 due to a lack of major touring content and subsequent low ticket sales,” said Hevern.
Brisbane Entertainment Centre’s (BEC) highest grossing event in 2016 was a March Madonna performance, which grossed $1,671,026.
According to Tim Worton, who oversees the Qudos Bank Arena, BEC, Perth Arena and Newcastle Entertainment Centre as group director of arenas, AEG Ogden, 2015 and 2016 were two of the flattest years recently for concert and live entertainment content in arenas.
“Consequently, revenue levels were down on what had been strong averages for the years leading up to those two years,” he said. Worton also works closely with the live entertainment division of the International Convention Centre (ICC) Sydney, overseeing its new 9,000-capacity ICC Theatre and 2,500-capacity Darling Harbour Theatre.
Worton said the reason for the decline is threefold.
“First, we had seen so many artists tour in the years up to 2014 that 2015 and 2016 were simply out of cycle for a lot of acts,” he said. “Also, the Australian dollar had been at parity or stronger than the U.S. dollar up until 2014, and the weakening to around 75 U.S. cents has made it more financially challenging to bring some tours to our market.”
In addition, a high incidence of stadium tours has negatively impacted Australian arenas. 
“In the past few months alone, we’ve seen Coldplay, Guns ‘N Roses, Adele and Justin Bieber play outdoors,” said Worton.
Prince’s Piano & Microphone tour was Perth Arena’s highest grossing performance for 2016, and turned out to be one of the legend’s final few live appearances.
“This past January, the sensational Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band returned for three sold-out performances to 42,000 fans,” said Michael Scott, the arena’s general manager. “It will be difficult to top.”

NEW DEVELOPMENTS
Changes in the Australian marketplace have resulted in the need for adjustments.
For example, Qudos Bank Arena is requiring additional bump-in and/or bump-out days to facilitate large-scale productions, as an increasing number of promoters and artists are requesting three to five or more days to set-up events, often for a single show.
“While we will always look to accommodate this where we can, it does come at a cost and can become quite problematic to schedule during peak concert touring periods,” said Hevern. 
In 2016, to reduce casual labor hours, BEC used permanent salaried staff wherever possible to assist with set ups and post-event pull downs.
“When events were hosted, casual catering staff had been cross trained, so we were able to have a strong focus on redeployments of casual staff for peak periods,” said Trish McNamara, the Centre’s general manager. “Where possible, all staff was required to take annual leave to reduce this overhead.”
In an effort to further strengthen its customer service, the BEC began focusing on reducing lost property and reconnecting patrons with their goods starting late last year and will continue in 2017.
Social media has had a major impact on its success rate, as have proactive steps taken at the event with live announcements/checking of the patrons’ details through the ticketing system, etc. 
“To date, we have returned approximately 90 percent of lost and found items since the customer service initiative commenced, and this has included wallets loaded with cash and cards, mobile phones, lost merchandise, etc.,” said McNamara. “The 10 percent not returned are items with no form of identification, such as shoes, clothing and drink bottles. While this may seem like just a small element of our operation, it has had a profound impact on the people who have been reunited with their personal items, and it has restored a good will feeling among our team.”
Environmentally-focused improvements also were an emphasis for some facilities. For example, the Perth Arena successfully added an organic recycling program to its already effective waste management scheme.
“The result is 86 percent of waste is now diverted from landfills, which drives business value through sustainability,” said Scott.
Also in 2016, Perth Arena’s Golden Ticket campaign was launched in support of Breast Cancer Care for the first time. It raised $71,710, with all proceeds to positively impact the lives of those in the community affected by breast cancer. The money paid household utility bills, provided home cleaning services, groceries, clothes or Counseling to 564 families.
“This year, we plan to partner with the public and private sector to expand the venue’s audience into Southeast Asia to be a positive contributor to tourism for Western Australia,” said Scott.

With a Bruce Springsteen concert that grossed $1,396,956, Qudos Bank Arena, located in Sydney Olympic Park, 2017 is off to a better start than the previous year.
“The bookings for 2017 show a marked improvement in regards to content that is already looking better than the previous two years,” said Steve Hevern, the arena’s general manager.
Bruce Springsteen was also a juggernaut for Brisbane Entertainment Centre (BEC), taking in $5,225,508 for two shows, the highest for the venue so far this year.
“The cycle seems to have turned for the better for 2017, with a very healthy level of bookings, particularly in the second half of 2017 and in the first four months of 2018,” said Tim Worton, who oversees Qudos Bank Arena, BEC, Perth Arena and Newcastle Entertainment Centre for AEG Ogden. “Accordingly, we are projecting strong revenue growth in the 2017/18 financial year over the past couple of years, and that seems set to be repeated in 2018/19. So the outlook is very positive, and we’re excited about the content that we expect to host over the next 18 to 24 months.”
Upgrades also are underway in Australia’s major facilities this year.
In 2017, the BEC’s outdoor Courtyard Catering operation will undergo a major refurbishment with new permanent outlets to replace the current temporary structures. These four permanent outlets will be multipurpose and can operate simultaneously or as standalone units. 
“The new outlets will provide patrons with better facilities and a greater catering offering,” said Worton. “These also will feature new permanent seating areas, which will assist in labor set-up costs.”
  Also this year, Perth Arena plans to commission the final two of four gantry winches in the main rigging zone.
“This greatly improves the speed, efficiency and safety of hauling motor chains to the roof,” said Michael Scott, general manager. “In addition, it will reduce the number of riggers required and overall costs to the production team.”

A new global standard was set for convention centers when the ICC Sydney opened in December, bringing state-of-the-art construction, technology and diligent planning to the forefront of world-class venue designs.   In the four months that the International Convention Center in Sydney has been operational, it’s already outpaced expectations and is on target to outgrow revenue projections, said ICC Sydney CEO Geoff Donaghy, who highlighted that the venue has bookings all the way out to 2026.
“The estimates were that the center would create $200 million per year,” he said. “Over 25 years, that equals $5 billion in Australian dollars. “The early indications are, and we measure this, that those numbers will be exceeded.”
The impressively large, $1.5 billion Aus. ($1.12 billion U.S.) convention center already has 170 events booked.
ICC Sydney officials and architects pride themselves that the venue can host three separated events at the same time, making the booking power of the facilities endless.
Three main buildings make up the ICC Sydney, which includes the ICC Sydney Theater, the exhibition space that has five exhibition halls and the convention center that hosts a number of events back to back or simultaneously.
In total, the ICC Sydney has 8,000 square meters (86,100 square feet) of meeting space, 35,000 sqm (114,829 sq. ft.) of exhibition space, a 5,000 sqm open air event deck, Australia’s largest grand ballroom and the 9,000-seat capacity ICC Sydney Theatre.
“I think the project exceeded all of our expectations,” said Bob Newman, president of AEG Facilities. “I think this project is going to redefine the industry in terms of functionality — the ability to accommodate exhibitions, conventions, corporate events and all varieties of public entertainment, all under one roof.”
ICC Sydney is managed by AEG Ogden, a division of AEG, which runs a variety of venues across Australia, Asia and the Middle East.

THE THREE YEAR DROUGHT
Imagine a major global hub without a convention center. That was Sydney’s reality for three years when the massive project that spans three blocks in the heart of downtown was being built.
“It took a very brave decision that Sydney would go without a convention center for three years,” Donaghy said. “Sydney had an existing convention center that had been operating for 30 years. There were a number of schemes to expand it.”
Ultimately, venue operators and the state government made the bold decision to construct a brand new facility that everyone hoped would become a global centerpiece and destination for the world’s top conferences.
Since the convention center opened in December, it’s hosted four international events, 17 exhibitions and 14 concerts.
“We’ve just finished two major medical conventions,” Donaghy said.
Accommodating attendees who fill that space is a priority for the venue, especially when it comes to connecting to the internet.
ICC Sydney’s technology was an important part of the entire project, and the expectation is that delegates and attendees will arrive with at least three devices that all require internet connections.

ECONOMIC IMPACT AND TIMELINESS 
ICC Sydney is part of a larger $3.4 billion project to revitalize the Darling Harbour that includes a new 590-room hotel. The Sofitel Darling Harbour is currently being built adjacent to ICC Sydney and will open in October.
New residential and commercial development, along with a new pedestrian boulevard will connect the harbor waterfront to Sydney’s Central Station, which is a railway transit.
ICC Sydney is touted as smartly positioned within the epicenter.
“It’s location, in the heart of a vibrant capital market, in the heart of a growing hospitality district, steps from the waterfront, all make it unmatched on the global playing field,” Newman said.
Hotels surrounding ICC Sydney are running at peak levels, and another 2,000 hotel rooms currently are under construction, Donaghy said.
“That creates an enormous demand and success of room nights,” he added.
The spending power alone from conference guests has a huge economic footprint, and outpaces what tourists spend. Convention delegates spend four to five times more per day than the average tourist, Donaghy highlighted.
“The convention center sees only about eight to 10 percent of that spending. The rest is out in Sydney,” he said. “We like to point out that the convention center is the nexus between the visitor economy and the intel economy. We’re attracting very important events out of the city and out of Asia as well.”
In January, the venue hosted the Amway China Leadership Seminar 2017, bringing more than 2,000 attendees to the newly-opened convention center.
Another economic impact that can’t go overlooked is the number of jobs ICC Sydney has created — starting with the design and construction, all the way to the 1,500 people who currently work at the venue.
The facility has 300 full-time staff and roughly 1,200 part-time employees, and those figures will soon increase to 320 full-time and 1,800 part-time workers.
The food and beverage side benefits a different sector of the economy. The ICC Sydney buys the majority of its food and beverage directly from suppliers, not wholesalers. That means the convention center is buying seafood from local seafood suppliers, beef from local cattle farmers and wine from Australia’s robust wineries.
“We’re giving them surety of business and surety of payment,” Donaghy said. “We’ve ensured that 80 percent of our wine list comes from New South Wales.”
Food and beverage doesn’t just come from Sydney, but also from various regional areas across Australia.
Donaghy and other ICC Sydney officials have started the process of measuring the job creation with the help of local universities, he said.

COUNTRY COMETH
Global conventions are one thing, but high profile entertainment is another, and the ICC Sydney certainly caters to the glitz and glamour of the music industry.
Australia’s country heartthrob Keith Urban christened the ICC Sydney Theater on Dec. 15 to a sold-out crowd.
“Being a good Aussie boy, that was very exciting,” Donaghy said.
The Dixie Chicks played at the theater in March, and the Zac Brown Band is on April’s lineup. Family friendly entertainment events also are planned at ICC Sydney throughout the year, including a Nickelodeon’s “Paw Patrol” — a live account of the kids show acted out on stage.
K.D. Lang will host a concert this summer, and American comedian Jerry Seinfeld also will entertain guests in August. The list goes on and on.
Sydney’s business community and the state government couldn’t be more pleased with the venues ongoing success so early out of the gate.
“Having the opportunity to build something brand new and bring the experience we have of 25 years in convention center development to the table is exciting,” Donaghy said, adding that he’s extremely proud to be part of something “on the edge of one of the most beautiful cities in the world.”

REPORTING FROM COLUMBIA, S.C. — Motivations behind National Basketball Association (NBA) owners’ investment in esports range from seeing future crossover potential in the fanbase to increasing value for existing team sponsors to attracting the best of the next generation of front office employees. It’s not as much about how it will be directly monetized as it is about how many ways it can be monetized.
Bill Sutton, Bill Sutton Associates and a founding director at University of South Florida, Tampa, cited Philadelphia 76ers CEO Scott O’Neil, one of the first to invest in an eSports team, as one who is “creating this entire portfolio approach….Other teams I’ve worked with are throwing money at it. Now they’re putting analytics teams on it and growing numbers. I don’t see the cash flow slowing down anytime soon – this is the soup du jour, where everyone wants to be right now.”
Sutton was participating in a panel on the explosion of eSports during the 20th annual Sport, Entertainment and Venues Tomorrow conference (SEVT) here March 22-24. SEVT is produced by the University of South Carolina and Venues Today.
Steve “Ryu” Rattacasa, owner/manager, Selfless Gaming, advised there is a huge future in eSports management, just as data analytics were touted in another session as a career opportunity.
But eSports is an immersive career, Sutton warned. His son left Google to work for Riot Games, which publishes League of Legends, and the interview process was eight months. He had to become proficient in the game to join the company because the game is the company culture, Sutton said.
Rattacasa started his career as a gamer. Now he represents players and teams. He finds the influx of external money from traditional sports organizations a challenge, but he’s fine with being Triple A. “We’re the small guy now. Our teams are very good but we don’t have millions of dollars. So what we’ve done is taken the strength of being knowledgeable of games, players and the environment and built players up with traditional marketing, developed their personal brand and then flipped them to traditional sports owners like Shaquille O’Neal.”
It’s the Wild West and ripe with opportunity for sports entrepreneurs, said Kenny Sugishita, ELEAGUE coordinator for WME/IMG. “We focus on treating the players as well as possible so they want to come back. We’re the first tournament host to always put some portion of our season on TV.” The challenge is that it’s extremely difficult to organize tournaments because the players are always traveling, the fans are spread out and sponsors have different needs, he said.
As a venue manager, Michael Enoch, Sandy Springs (Ga.) Performing Arts Center, sees huge potential for building an eSports business in his theater, just as he did at Mercedes-Benz Arena, Shanghai, China, where he worked for AEG. In Shanghai, League of Legends tournaments drew 9,000-12,000 people, were priced $70-$150, and ran three days, starting with a concert on Friday and gaming Saturday and Sunday. The venue needs to have enough bandwidth, he said. And it’s a challenge to figure out how to monetize merchandise/software sales. “It’s hard to calculate what they’re selling,” Enoch said.
Michael Farris, Aspire Group, works  with collegiate-focused organizations like the Collegiate Starleague, where participants play for scholarships, and University League of Legends, a string of clubs on campuses. “College kids are interested in going to a live event and will pay $50-$70 to see eSports teams. They are not willing to travel; but they will go to something in their market,” Farris said
The Sixers are setting up eSports camps and clinics, all the things one would see in basketball, Sutton said. “The sky is the limit. This might be like Apple stock in 1980. People who are buying this have no idea what to do with it.” Riot’s League of Legends grosses $1.7 billion a year and it’s free to play and has no sponsorships right now, Sutton added.
The new generation of fans wants to experience, not just watch. Sutton sees the merger of eSports and Virtual Reality as the future.
The new generation of fans that reject Dish Network or Comcast, “we call them cord cutters,” are giving way to the “cord nevers,” Rattacasa said. The ‘cord nevers’ are never going to watch a basketball game. “They don’t have that interest.”

Don’t think of the Midwest as flyover states; there’s serious money to be made between the coasts. Cumulatively, the venues on Venues Today’s 2016 Midwest Top Stops charts were up a solid seven percent over 2015, reporting concert and event grosses of $368 million, up from $321 million. In-demand acts, higher ticket prices, the improving economy and good fortune in routing account for the increase, according to the venue operators interviewed.
The $113-billion U.S. Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, opened in July 2016. Since then, it’s hosted 168 million guests. “It’s an amazing building and has performed extremely well,” said Patrick Talty, GM. “Building openings are tough, but we’ve done a great job of hitting the ground running and meeting high expectations. In fact, we’ve been more successful than we predicted.”
The first event was a sold-out Chelsea vs. AC Milan international soccer game. “We blew it out of the water,” said Talty. “This was quickly followed by back-to-back Luke Bryan and Metallica concerts.” Vikings football followed, then three Monster Truck shows, a Supercross — plus another 400 events.
Tickets ranged from $25-$200 and Talty said the venue easily met its $6.75 million net operating guarantee. Per caps were around $2 for college baseball and went as high as $29 for the bigger events.
Food and beverage (F&B) is provided by Aramark. “The catering operation is exceeding all expectations,” he said. “Minneapolis is a foodie scene, and Aramark did a great job of finding local flavors the people love. We have craft beers, celebrity chefs and Aramark went out their way to include minority suppliers such as T-Rex cookies and Lola’s Wings.”
Security is provided by Monterrey Security. “We have a strong integrated command center with a lot of technology in place,” he said. “We’re constantly looking at how to make a better fan experience and keep everyone as safe as we can.”
Talty’s prognosis for the rest of 2017 is equally sunny. “X-Games are coming this summer, Guns N’ Roses, Coldplay, and Justin Bieber are booked, and there’s a little thing called Super Bowl 52 headed to U.S. Bank Stadium in February 2018. The world will be watching,” said Talty.
Talty said he’s focused on fan engagement and that every venue in the world needs to be just as focused. “Without fans coming, we’d have an empty building,” he said.
  “We had a really good year,” said Jack Larson, Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul, Minn., VP and GM, who said the venue was up 10 percent in revenue in 2016. He attributes the bump to the success of the Minnesota Wild hockey team, the healthy number of concerts they put on and crowd-pleasing state tournaments.
  “We opened the Adele tour in July,” said Larson, “We also did the sell-out Prince tribute, Bruce Springsteen, Mumford and Sons, Def Leppard, and Blake Shelton. The Earth, Wind & Fire show was a big success.” Tickets ranged from $30-$250.
  Larson also praised the performance of his family shows, Disney On Ice and The World’s Toughest Rodeo.
Larson said that it was “a really good year” for F&B, which is provided by Levy Restaurants. “We changed a couple of clubs into all-inclusive areas that have been very well accepted,” he said. “We did chef-takeovers in our Jack Daniels Old No. 7 Club, and we were up around 10 percent in F&B as well last year.”
  Improvements included a new hospitality area/bar/restaurant called The Reserve on the suite level. “We do special promotions that bring people up there,” he said. Xcel Center is evaluating what they will remodel next. “We’re 16 years old and are looking at what we can do to enhance the fan experience.”
  BOK Center, Tulsa, Okla., was named ‘Arena Of The Year’ by the International Entertainment Buyers Association (IEBA) in 2016 and winning the award was the highlight of the year for GM Jeff Nickler. “We’ve been nominated every year since we opened in 2008, and to finally take the award home was a great acknowledgement of the 100-plus staff we have here who make the magic happen everyday.”
Tulsa has become a strong rock market, said Nickler. Big shows included Iron Maiden, Coldplay, Billy Joel, Justin Bieber, and Carrie Underwood. BOK Center was the highest-grossing date on the Pentatonix tour. “A lot of big shows across all genres of music really helped us in 2016.”
  Nickler said he saw higher ticket prices across the board in 2016. The ticket price range was $25 to $250. “The average ticket prices were well over $100, which is unusual for our market,” he said.
  A redesign to the concession stands in 2015 brought a whopping 75-percent-increase in F&B in 2016. BOK Center also spent $250,000 upgrading security with new magnetometers, adding additional security cameras and additional security protocols. “A lot of this wasn’t in place until this year,” he said. “The conversation really was security here this year and industry wide.”
  2017 is looking just as prosperous for BOK Center. “We’re already trending way ahead of 2016,” he said.
  “We celebrated our 20th Anniversary in 2016, and it was a big year,” said Richard MacKeigan, SMG regional GM and regional booking director, Van Andel Arena, DeVos Place and DeVos Performance Hall, Grand Rapids, Mich. “We hosted 31 concerts in 2016, the highest number of concerts in 18 years and a 30 percent increase over the average number of concerts the arena has hosted each year throughout its 20 years. The success of these bookings has allowed the SMG-managed venues in Grand Rapids to enjoy their best fiscal performance in history.”
  To commemorate their 20th Anniversary, they hosted the “I Love the 90s” tour. “We carried the 90s theme throughout the whole night, including 1990s concessions prices, which were very well received by our guests,” said MacKeigan.
  Hot shows were Garth Brooks, who set the venue record for most tickets sold for a single engagement with six shows over four days; Paul McCartney, who broke the venue record for highest grossing ticket sales for a single event and Kanye West, who brought in the heaviest production the venue has ever seen, weighing in at over 200,000 pounds.
  MacKeigan said the 2016 Grand Rapids market “has been responding very well the last 18 months or so. Shows that should do well are doing great and shows that are back annually or every other year are seeing double digit increases over their last play.” He sees more traction on larger acts that, at first look, may appear too large for his market but “are taking a chance and seeing success.”
  Ticket prices ranged from $12 for family shows up to $253 on the high end for concerts. Quite a few events also offered VIP packages. The complex’s 2016 budget was $11 million.
  The arena’s concessionaire, Savor…catering by SMG, enjoyed their best year in sales in 2016 due in part to the 20th anniversary and the ongoing success of the Grand Rapids Griffins hockey team.
  Some of the new items introduced to concessions were mac and cheese with toppings, a pizza sub and the Grub Tub, which is a cup with a bowl-like attachment that allows patrons to hold a meal and drink in the same hand. They also offered a cheeseburger or chicken tender Grub Tub with a soda of the guest’s choice.
  Their restaurant, The Intermission, introduced a Cuban sandwich; jalapeno bacon chicken poppers and chicken drummies. They also added new items in the suites: The Taste of India package with Alu Chole, garbanzo beans and tomato sauce with basmati rice, samosa and pakora with a dipping sauce and they introduced a gluten-free dessert, The Sweet Street Sampler.
  Improvements to the building included large-scale interior and exterior upgrades to LED lighting. Next year, they are “looking at continuing projects to keep the building and its systems modern and fresh, including exterior painting, HVAC upgrades, elevator upgrades and a few others,” MacKeigan said. “We have a  long-term capital plan, and we work closely with the Grand Rapids Griffins of the AHL, our primary tenant, our SMG corporate office and the Grand Rapids-Kent County Convention/Arena Authority, our owners, to assess opportunities that provide the best return.”
  Van Andel Arena bought several walk-through metal detectors in 2016 and notifies their patrons for each event through e-mail with security measures specific to the event they’re attending.
  MacKeigan’s outlook for 2017 is strong. “The Griffins continue to draw well and are playing well, and have clinched a spot in the playoffs,” he said. “Concert activity looks good with good shows on the books, including Chris Stapleton, Red Hot Chili Peppers and The Who.”
  “2016 was the best year we've had since we opened,” said Steve Miller, SMG GM, Huntington Center, Toledo, Ohio. “The stars aligned for us, no pun intended.” This followed Huntington Center’s worst year ever in 2015. “It’s a function of routing. The dates worked out for us this year.”
  Elton John, James Taylor, Luke Bryan, Def Leppard, Professional Bull Riders (PBR), Disney On Ice, Monster Jam and Harlem Globetrotters were highlights. “There are a lot of great shows out there, and it’s a matter of finding the right dates and the right deals,” he offered.
Tickets ranged from $10 to $140. Huntington Center netted $2.5 million in revenue and spent $2.4 million.
  F&B also had its best year ever, said Miller. “We were up 10-12 percent.” Per caps were $2.50-$4 for family shows, $8-8.50 for hockey and $10-$12 for concerts. The concessionaire is AVI Food Systems.
  Security has been “a topic of conversation” and “we’ve been vigilant about training,” he said. Huntington Center invested $30,000 to buy 14 magnetometers. “We’re doing it for all the concerts,” he said, “Live Nation is demanding it and so are the artists. We’re fine with it.”
  The rest 2017 is “looking great” and Miller wanted to be sure to mention that without the promoters and his partnerships with them, “we wouldn’t have success in Toledo.”
  “It’s been a terrific year,” said Joan Squires, president of Omaha Performing Arts, which runs the Holland Performing Arts Center and Orpheum Theater, Omaha, Neb. “We’ve had an uptick in attendance, prices are up, the economy is good and people are looking for things to do.”
  At the Holland Performing Arts Center the highest grossing acts were Yo Yo Ma, Garrison Keillor, Jethro Tull and Joe Bonamassa. At the Orpheum, hot shows were
“The Book Of Mormon,” “Phantom of The Opera,” “Cinderella,” “Newsies” and “White Christmas.”
  Tickets ranged from $20-$140 at both venues. The operating budget for both venues was $18-$20 million.
  F&B is doing well and allowing guests to bring beverages into the theatres “really gave us a boost,” said Squires. They expanded event catering and weddings and added a bar and restaurant at Holland Center called Zinc that is doing “really well.”
  Holland Center is 11 years old. The Orpheum is 90 years old. “We continue to invest in both properties,” said Squires. Improvements to Holland Center include a new sound system, new lighting, new carpet, adding an education center and new sidewalks.
At the Orpheum, they’ve installed a new rigging system, a new sound system, an electronic marquee, a patron lounge and a sky bridge to the parking structure. Together, the capital improvements budget was $2.5 million.
  Squires said that the venues add $40 million in economic impact to the region.
  “People come to Omaha and see our venues and are surprised at the quality of the venues,” she added. Twenty-five percent of the revenue is contributed. “We want to thank the community, especially the generous philanthropic community, for all their support, which makes it all possible.”
  2017 is looking even better. “We’re already having one of our best years, and I’m really positive on the rest of the year,” she said.
  Lisa Krohn, director of theater programs, Hennepin Theatre Trust, Minneapolis, which runs the Orpheum Theatre, State Theatre and Pantages Theatre, said
the venues were up five percent this year and that “all three venues are doing very well and inching up in revenue.”
Krohn cited “Newsies,” “The Book Of Mormon” and “The Lion King” as their top shows in 2016. Tickets ranged from $50-$200 with VIP packages that include the best seats in the house, merchandise and a meet and greet going for as high as $350.
She said F&B was equally up around five percent, and she attributes that bump to the theater bringing in “more theater food.” At the Orpheum, they replaced all the seats.
New security measures, including wanding and bag and coat checks, were causing delays, so all the theaters have been advising patrons to arrive early to get through the screening process, she added.

On April 14, Bon Jovi will wrap the 30-date first leg of the band’s This House is Not For Sale tour at Denver’s Pepsi Center, in many ways a tour of “firsts” for the venerable Jersey band.
This was Bon Jovi’s first tour launched without founding guitarist Richie Sambora, who left the band early in the 2013 Because We Can trek (Phil X and producer John Shanks take on axe duties this time out). It is the first tour with legendary manager Irving Azoff overseeing management duties (the band had been managed in-house through Bon Jovi Management). This is the first tour under a newly-restructured label deal for Bon Jovi, continuing a 34-year relationship with Universal Music Group (the band’s 13th album “This House Is Not For Sale” is on the Island imprint). Tour manager Thomas McAndrews is on his first tour with the band (former TM Scott Casey is now with U2). And, finally, the 2017 run is Bon Jovi’s first tour with Live Nation as the global promoter (each of the four preceding tours were promoted globally by AEG Live).
Of course, many aspects of Bon Jovi remain consistent, first and foremost continuing to blow out arenas, grossing $51,738,625 from 479,572 tickets sold on the first leg, according to the tour. Live Nation’s Ryan McElrath, senior VP of domestic touring, running point on the Bon Jovi tour, said the band has “never been stronger in the marketplace,” citing “incredible sellout business in markets like San Diego and Sacramento, where Bon Jovi hasn’t been in years. The major markets are smashes, as they have always been for Bon Jovi.”
Bon Jovi is still represented by Rob Light, managing partner at Creative Artists Agency, and tour director Paul Korzilius, who started with Bon Jovi on Feb. 1, 1987, still oversees touring. Most importantly, Bon Jovi is still led by front man Jon Bon Jovi, the driving force of the band both creatively and on the business front.
Ultimately, it is Bon Jovi the bandleader who signs off on most all of the critical decisions that led to this tour of “firsts.” That includes playing markets they’ve not played in years, like Legacy Arena at BJCC in Birmingham, Ala. Bon Jovi told Venues Today that going into some of these markets was his idea, including Birmingham, where the band hadn’t played since 1989.  “I know there are people down there, I know the country guys are going down there,” he recalled telling Korzilius, whom Bon Jovi credits with the decision to launch the tour in Greenville, S.C., at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena on Feb. 8. “The last tour started in a blizzard in Connecticut, so we said, ‘not this time, let’s stay South.’”
Korzilius agreed that sometimes markets like Birmingham can get “looked over” on major tours, and that city fit well in the routing scheme this year. “We had a show in Tampa (Amalie Arena, Feb. 14), and our next show was in Nashville (Feb. 18). Birmingham was right along the way, so no reason not to go back, and we had great results there,” he said. “The great thing was, the fans were always there. You just have to get to them.”
They got to them in Birmingham — 14,130 of them, to be exact, a sellout. “The crowd embraced Bon Jovi when returning to Birmingham after 28 years,” said an enthusiastic Susette Hunter, director of sales at the arena, who added that Bon Jovi “set fire to the stage in a ‘Blaze of Glory’ as the crowd danced and sang along.”
Playing these “places we hadn’t been to in quite a while” proved two points, Bon Jovi said: “How deep the roots of the band are, nationwide or worldwide; and also that people will come out to see live music if it’s presented in a venue that’s close enough that it makes sense for them. For a big band saying ‘I’m not going to Alabama,’ there are enough folks in Alabama that would want to see a U2 show.”
Live Nation’s McElrath points to Bon Jovi’s “multi-generational” fan base, which allows the promoter to make use of a wide array of promotional tactics. “From a marketing standpoint, we use all of our tools, from traditional radio to digital media,” McElrath said. “Bon Jovi fans are incredibly passionate, engaged and on their feet for every song.”

NEW ARENAS, OLD FRIENDS
Several new arenas have opened in North America since the band last toured, so buildings like T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (Feb. 25) and Golden 1 Center in Sacramento (Feb. 28) hosted the band for the first time. Of course, many arenas on the route have been rocked many times by Bon Jovi. “Some of the old buildings are like old friends, but they get new shoes,” Bon Jovi said. “Like Dallas.  American Airlines Center is different backstage, but it’s just a great building, with a lot of [development] around it now. Things like that are very different but, generally speaking, the buildings have been great.”
Bon Jovi set a concert attendance record at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville with 18,514 in the house. That topped the previous record set two years ago by Eric Church, who packed in 18,411 to his Outsiders tour date on Jan. 10, 2015. “To be able to still set attendance records like in Nashville, where everyone and their mother always plays, is reassuring,” Bon Jovi admitted, noting that there was plenty of meat left on the bone in several markets. “To know we could have done four or five, six Gardens, four nights in Toronto, easily, and multiples in Philly, and didn’t even put the Bostons and Washingtons on the schedule yet, is very, very nice.”
A sold out crowd of 18,500 turned out for the band’s March 31 appearance at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, which Comcast Spectator President John Page called a “second home” for the band. “We continue to do great business here at Wells Fargo Center every time the band comes through,” Page said. “We’re grateful to Jon and the band, as well as Paul Korzilius and his team, for another sell out. We hope to get them back again soon.”
Playing the Forum on March 8 was another special gig on this tour for Bon Jovi. “My memories of the Forum are so deep that when we played there back in the ‘80s on the New Jersey record, we had the No. 1 album, the No. 1 single, [and] I went back to the St. James Club—which it was called at the time (now the Sunset Tower Hotel)—on the Sunset Strip, and looked out my window at a huge billboard of the five of us,” he recalled. “I said to my girlfriend next to me in the bed, ‘let’s get married, now.’ She said, ‘what are you, nuts?’ Twenty-eight years later, she’s still my wife. That’s the Forum I remember. So to go back there now, after all these years, was a treat, to see what they did to that old building and that landmark, turning it into an incredible-sounding experience. I hope to go back sometime and see the rest of it.”
Armed with the renewed vigor that comes with a well-received new record (“This House Is Not for Sale” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard album chart, the band’s fourth consecutive to top the chart), Bon Jovi debuted the songs with a series of small venue live “listening parties” last fall. As McElrath pointed out, “a No. 1 record is great way to kick off a touring cycle.”
A whopping six songs from the new album appear in the 2017 tour set list, as Bon Jovi refuses to become simply a nostalgia act. One would be hard-pressed to find another 30-year touring band playing 25 percent newly-released material, at least, “not my peer group,” Bon Jovi said, adding that many of the bands that broke alongside Bon Jovi in the mid-‘80s are out in classic rock packages, playing strictly their hits from the era. “I’ll walk away before that day comes. I said it when I was 25, I’ll say it again now: I ain’t doing it.”

Madonna, Iron Maiden, Billy Joel and Coldplay didn’t plan on routing to BOK Center, Tulsa, Okla. In fact, they all said ‘no thanks’ to repeated requests to play at the venue.
But Jeff Nickler, arena GM for SMG, refused to take ‘no’ for an answer. “Our 2016 season was made up of a lot of acts that never played the building or even the  market,” said Nickler. “We worked really aggressively behind the scenes to get some of the shows to come here.”
“We’re in the kind of market where we just can’t sit around waiting for the phone to ring,” he said. “The artists aren’t banging down the doors to come to Tulsa to perform. We think long term. We lay the groundwork years in advance for many of the shows we book.”
Nickler vigorously chased Iron Maiden for years. “We were one of only nine U.S. cities on the Book of Souls tour,” said Nickler proudly. “We’re a strong rock market and it took a lot of convincing them to come here so we could prove it.”
Ditto for Coldplay and Piano Man Billy Joel, but Madonna took the longest, over five years of enticements. “We cultivated the relationship with Gerry Barad (COO, Live Nation Global Touring) for five years-plus and finally got Madonna to make her first-ever visit to the state of Oklahoma. It took time and effort, but it was worth everything we went through to land her.”
The key ingredients to success are time and a big travel budget. “This industry is based on relationships,” he said. “The amount of annual travel and budget we allocate to developing relationships is huge, in the six figures, and we’ve seen it really pay off.” Nickler said that it takes “dozens of trips to manage and cultivate these relationships.” — Brad Weissberg

Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment, N.Y., has expanded its reach on the West Coast and made two strategic hires.

Tina Suca

Tina Suca has joined the organization as VP, industry relations. Suca will support the booking efforts for all BSE properties: Barclays Center, Brooklyn, N.Y.; NYCB LIVE, Uniondale, N.Y.; Webster Hall, New York; and the soon-to-be renovated LIU Brooklyn (N.Y.) Paramount Theatre. Prior to this, Suca served as VP, entertainment for ArenaNetwork; GM of Nassau (N.Y.) Veterans Memorial Coliseum under SMG; GM of The Forum, Inglewood, Calif.; and GM of The Wiltern, Los Angeles.

Andy Miller

Andy Miller has been hired as executive director, global partnerships. Miller most recently served as director of national sales for NBC Olympics & Sports Ventures, where he managed western regional partnerships. Prior to that, he was GM of sales & marketing for IMG College, Winston-Salem, N.C.; account executive, NFL Network & NFL.com and account executive for national network sales for FOX Cable Sports.

Both will be based in the company’s Los Angeles office.

John Mayer kicked off his The Search for Everything world tour on March 31 at Times Union Center, Albany, N.Y. This tour stretches across eight countries before the first leg wraps May 12, at The O2, London. Mayer made a stop at Madison Square Garden, making our Hot Tickets chart this week, with the Live Nation-promoted event grossing $1.4 million with ticket prices ranging from $50-$120. The nearly 15,000 fans in attendance, along with all online ticket buyers for the North American tour dates, will also receive a physical copy of his new album The Search for Everything. Fans can catch the next John Mayer show this Friday, April 21, at The Forum, Inglewood, Calif.

The much-loved comedian/television and movie star Billy Crystal is having a stellar year with his 2017 Spend the Night with Billy Crystal tour, which hit our Hot Tickets chart this week. Crystal brought his unique, stand-up comedy show to the Chicago Theatre where he entertained over 7,000 fans with two sold-out, Jam Productions-promoted events on April 1-2, grossing nearly $650,000. Crystal will be bringing the laughs with his unpredictable humor to the Fox Theatre, Atlanta, on April 27.

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 March 21-April 18.

An Apple iPad Pro which will be bench-side for all NHL teams.

(Editor's note: This story previously appeared in SportTechie.com)

During this year’s playoffs, National Hockey League (NHL) coaches and players don’t have to wait until intermission to review highlights and game-play footage. In all 16 playoff venues, the league has installed a video coaching system that will include three Apple iPad Pros placed on holders on the glass behind or on the side of team benches. Starting with the 2017-18 season, all 31 NHL arenas will have the new system.

The iPads come loaded with an app that allows coaches and players to view highlights in real-time, which can be created by each team’s video coaches through the use of league-issued Mac computers.

“By the time the player gets off his shift, that content is available within a minute, I guess, from the time it actually took place,” NHL Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer Peter DelGiacco told the Associated Press, which first reported the story. “Today, generally speaking, a lot of that would be done between periods and there’s a limited amount of time. … This kind of gives the coaches and the players real-time access so that they can make adjustments.”

On Wednesday night, a bird’s-eye photo from Getty Images showed a Montreal Canadiens staffer looking at an iPad during an Eastern Conference quarter-finals matchup against the New York Rangers.

With in-arena video technology system and through a collaboration with Apple, on-ice officials will now be able to utilize iPad Pros for video reviews, too. For this past regular season, coaches were able to have video monitors on benches to assist in challenging offsides calls or goaltender interference situations.

“It’s going to be huge in the playoffs,” Washington Capitals coach Barry Trotz said to the AP. “The referees, the league wants to get it right, the coaches want to get it right.”

Guy Boucher, coach of the Ottawa Senators, added that having the iPads accessible on the benches has minimized the amount of intermission time spent communicating with players because they could do it immediately during the play.

“We look at it because sometimes we’re not seeing everything that’s going on on the ice,” he said. “It’s good also for feedback with our players and, yeah, it’s good for challenges and all that. … It helps us also between periods because instead of looking at 12 different things between periods, we might have to look at five or six, so it’s quicker for us to get back to our players and tell them about adjustments because sometimes we already know a few adjustments and a lot of times we’ll address it right on the bench.”

Both the NFL and Major League Baseball (MLB) have various tablet technologies on the sidelines and dugouts. The Microsoft Surface, as part of a five-year, $400-million deal with the NFL that started in 2013, came under fire this past October when New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick vowed he was done utilizing the technology. Manager Joe Maddon of the Chicago Cubs had his own difficulties during the National League Championship Series (NLCS) last Fall, failing to submit a starting lineup with his nonleague-issued iPad device. Last March, Apple and Major League Baseball announced a deal that would place iPad Pros in each team’s dugout throughout the season.

Jack Lucas helped start TicketsWest 30 years ago. He retired at the end of March and handed over operations to VP Dusty Kurtz, though he maintains his ties to the industry through his promotion and production house, West Coast Entertainment. Lucas spoke with Venues Today about three decades in the ticketing industry, what he’s learned, what he’s taking away.

Why is now the time to retire?

I’ve been contemplating it for a while. I can’t believe it’s been 30 years. I’ve enjoyed the whole damn thing. It hasn’t been easy, but it’s been a ‘pinch-me’ type of career. But I didn’t want to be one of those guys that people say, ‘is he still there?’ 

How do you feel about leaving a company you started?

I thought there would be a lot of emotion transitioning out after 30 years, but it’s not the emotion I thought I’d have because I know Dusty has it all under control. Ten or 11 years ago, Dusty came aboard and one of my guys said I should keep on eye on him; he’s pretty sharp. He did a great job as regional manager in Denver and then when I was looking for a VP, I thought he was perfect. I’ve been mentoring him to take over for the last four years. He’ll do a great job, and it’s time.

What is the best advice you have given Dusty?

Our business is like a three-legged-stool. One leg is a great product; leg two is great clients and the third leg is getting great people to work for you. If you don’t have all three legs, that stool is not going to stand.

How have you kept up with the dramatic changes in the ticketing industry in the past few years?

We’re constantly changing. If someone says they are not good with change, I will not hire that person. When I started ticketing technology moved like molasses. Today it’s very client-centric, customer-centric, and both bases are telling us what they want. It’s a whole different paradigm. You have to be willing to adapt and move quickly.

What are the biggest changes you’ve seen in 30 years?

I started with four employees and now we have 150. Now we have call centers, IT people, network specialists, marketing people, social media people, it goes on and on.

What are your favorite and least favorite parts of the job?

My favorite is the client interaction. I can sincerely tell you I know every one of our clients. Some of our clients include Spokane Public Facilities District, which we never take for granted just because we are in Spokane; Colorado Rockies, which took three years to land and they’ve been with us 25 years and Portland'5 Centers for the Arts, another account it took several years to get. I love working with Robyn Williams, she is a strong leader. My least favorite part of the job is the business aspect. You have to keep growing the business, ensuring profitability and making a lot of decisions. Sometimes the business side can overwhelm you. The thing that keeps me up at night is that I have to set the vision. My employees are dependent on me, and I take that responsibility seriously. You have to keep pressing and moving the bar up.

How did you get started in the ticketing industry?

I’m a Vietnam vet and came home after two tours in the Navy. I went to Eastern Washington University, Cheney, to get my degree in music. I was almost ready to graduate when my dad, a former hockey player, suggested I go down to the Spokane Entertainment Facilities, where he knew some people, to get a part-time job. I got hired as an usher. I worked for Mike Kobluk, former president of IAVM, and Kevin Twohig, one of the charter teachers for the IAVM school at Oglebay. They both played a key part in my career. A few years later, they created a new position, events supervisor, which involved being there at night. I thought I could teach during the day and work there at night, and I got the job. I used the money to buy an airplane that I still own. The local 93 stagehands asked me if I wanted to work move-ins and move-outs. I took that job and did that during the day, went home, put on a coat and tie and returned as the events supervisor. When the show was over, I put my jeans back on and did the move-out. It gave me an up over a lot of people who don’t understand the backstage part of the business.

How did TicketsWest start?

In 1985, the city of Spokane talked about going from hard tickets to computerized tickets. The city put out an RFP and picked a local businessman named Don Barbieri to run it. A few years later, in 1987, Don created a company called G&B Select-a-Seat and asked me to come work for him. I was called ticket manager. We sold our first ticket in 1987 for a Cyndi Lauper concert. In the mid-90’s, we changed it to TicketsWest.

What was the model?

There’s always going to be Ticketmaster out there. I don’t want to compete with them for the rest of my life. So I found a niche where we can be successful, and that was in the tier two and tier three markets. We have offices in Denver and Portland. so we’re in tier one cities, but we built our client base in tier two and tier three markets. That’s how we built our success and sustained our business. Around that time we got a phone call from Columbia Artists. They were playing a “Cats” tour and lined up Portland and Seattle but needed a third stop in the Midwest to make it financially feasible. We did it in Spokane and started G&B Presents. We grew it, and now we’ve produced everything from Willie Nelson to Tony Bennett to Ray Charles to Broadway musicals to circuses.

What is the biggest highlight from your 30 years at TicketsWest?

My biggest highlight is the first time I put Garth Brooks on sale in the early 90’s. We ended up doing six performances. We’d sell out one show, open up another, then another, and that was a real high point. We pulled it off without a whole lot of challenges, but we brought down the phone system in Spokane and no one could call 911 or the hospitals. We eventually had to have a meeting with the city to make sure that didn’t happen again.

Eric Waller, CTO, and SeetGeek co-founders, Jack Groetzinger and Russ D'Souza.

In a major move, SeatGeek announced the acquisition of Israeli ticketing software company TopTix for $56-million, the largest acquisition in SeatGeek’s history.

The purchase represents a significant investment in primary ticketing on behalf of SeatGeek as it continues to build its SeatGeek Open ticketing platform in an effort to replace industry incumbents as a ticketing platform for rightsholders.

“We have always had a vision of openness in ticketing, when historically, it’s a closed business, and SeatGeek had the same vision,” said Fred Maglione, TopTix executive chairman.

The acquisition was financed by a new $57-million Series D investment round in SeatGeek led by Glynn Capital, with participation from existing investors Accel, Causeway Media Partners, Haystack Partners, Mousse Partners and Technology Crossover Ventures.

“The thing that impressed us was TopTix went through an entire software rewrite,” said Russ D’Souza, co-founder of SeatGeek. “The company is able to take a diverse set of clients, from EPL teams to museums to concert halls, and can ticket anything around the world, which speaks to the heart of the software.”

TopTix brings a modern ticketing platform and engineering team to SeatGeek, and has provided ticketing software for more than 500 institutions. TopTix processes 80 million tickets a year in 16 countries. Current TopTix clients, which will now be clients of SeatGeek, range from museums and theaters to festivals and sports teams, including organizations such as the Royal Dutch Football Association, Ravinia Festival and multiple English soccer clubs.

“We developed a technological platform that is not locked into one silo in how inventory is distributed,” said Maglione.

TopTix will power the expansion of SeatGeek Open, SeatGeek’s primary ticketing platform that launched in August 2016. This platform allows artists and teams to sell tickets directly within other apps and websites, in places where fans are spending time and consuming content. Tickets, for example, could be made available through popular ecommerce websites, travel tools and messaging sites.

TopTix has served as SeatGeek’s technology partner for the company’s first primary ticketing client, Sporting Kansas City of Major League Soccer. The technology has helped Sporting KC increase online sales by 61 percent thus far compared to last season, and drive four times the amount of mobile purchasing the team saw with their previous ticket provider throughout 2016.

“Every team is pushing legacy ticketing companies,” said D’Souza. “The industry is ripe for change, but the only problem is with the philosophy and technology.”

TopTix will operate as a subsidiary of SeatGeek, continuing to service clients across the globe.

With the addition of TopTix engineering and business leadership teams, SeatGeek is now comprised of about 250 employees, located in seven offices across 13 countries.

“We will look back at this as a pivotal moment in the live entertainment industry,” said D’Souza. “We’re taking the power from ticketing companies and giving control to rightsholders.”

NCAA picked 613 host sites for games through 2022.

The National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) sifted through more than 3,000 bid submissions, whittling down a final list to 613 host sites for preliminary rounds and finals of predetermined championships from 2017 through 2022.

With 84 of the NCAA’s 90 championships up for bid across multiple sports, 43 states found their way into hosting at least one round of some NCAA championship, with Pennsylvania taking the top spot with 53 hosting responsibilities, led by Pittsburgh earning 22 tasks, the most of any city. Florida, 51, wasn’t far behind.

While a variety of sports filled out the selection process, the marquee announcements for venues across the country come as the NCAA awards hosting responsibilities for NCAA basketball tournament rounds, doling out key hosting jobs to a variety of venues not yet even built.

“Working with our valued host institutions and conferences, as well as sports commissions and cities, to create a great atmosphere for student-athletes, coaches and fans with the men’s and women’s basketball tournaments is our goal every year,” said Dan Gavitt, NCAA senior vice president of basketball.

Criteria for selecting host sites included creating an “exceptional experience” for the student-athletes, along with adherence to NCAA bid specifications. Specifications can include, but are not limited to, providing optimal facilities; ease of travel to the location and ample lodging; and adherence to NCAA principles, which include providing an atmosphere that is safe and respects the dignity of all attendees.

With the next five men’s Final Four sites previously announced, the NCAA needed to fill in the locations of the preliminary and regional rounds from 2019 through 2022. The new faces enter the fray in 2022, where three cities that haven’t hosted a men’s tournament in decades were added to the mix. And two in buildings not yet constructed.

Chase Center, San Francisco, the future home of the NBA’s Golden State Warriors, earned the West Regional in 2022, bringing the regional round of the tournament to the city for the first time since 1939, the year of the inaugural tournament. Set to open in 2019, Chase Center has already landed the largest NCAA tournament stage an arena can muster (all Final Fours are played in stadiums).

“Chase Center and the surrounding area are going to be a destination for the entire Bay Area and having the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship West Regional at Chase Center in 2022 is great for not only the city of San Francisco, but the entire Bay Area to come and see some of the best in college basketball,” said Rick Welts, Warriors president. “This is one of the most exciting events on the calendar for sports … we’re excited for this to be the first event officially on our Chase Center schedule.”

Less than an hour after the planned, $450-million Multipurpose Arena in Fort Worth, Texas, announced its new naming rights sponsor as Dickies Arena, the venue was named host for the 2022 first and second rounds, along with four years of women’s gymnastics, bringing NCAA basketball to the city for the first time since 1970.

“This is another testament to the fantastic partnership that Texas Christian University (TCU) has with the City of Fort Worth,” said Chris Del Conte, TCU director of intercollegiate athletics. “Now with the new Dickies Arena coming to fruition, Fort Worth is an incredibly attractive host site for many NCAA Championships, which will certainly benefit TCU student-athletes, coaches and fans.”

Dickies Arena is scheduled for a November 2019 opening and will hold 13,300 fans in its basketball configuration.

For the first time in 30 years, Cincinnati will draw NCAA men’s basketball to its city in 2020. But instead of coming to a building not yet open, the NCAA has selected a 40-year old venue, U.S. Bank Arena, in need of renovations. But that could change. Owner Nederlander Entertainment told local media on April 19 that the plan to draw the NCAA to Cincinnati included a provision to remodel the venue.

That could happen with a brand-new arena, but no official announcement has taken place. The arena has a list of previous hosting responsibilities, including a Women’s Final Four in 1997 and four men’s hosting duties dating all the way back to 1979.

Of the five previously announced men’s Final Four hosts, two will host NCAA events for the first time. Opened in 2016, U.S. Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, hosts in 2019 and Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, scheduled for an August opening, will host in 2020.

On the women’s side, five of the seven arenas awarded regional responsibilities in 2019 and 2020 do so for the first time. In 2019, Wintrust Arena, Chicago, and Moda Center, Portland, Ore., earn NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship games for the first time. They join Times Union Center, Albany, N.Y., for its third hosting responsibility and Greensboro (N.C.) Coliseum for its fifth.

Greensboro Coliseum also earned early round men’s games in 2020. The venue has hosted 63 NCAA men’s tournament games, the fifth most in tournament history. The NCAA had previously stripped North Carolina sites of hosting duties in 2016-17 following the state’s enactment of HB2. But with the repeal of the bill earlier this year, the NCAA announced that any site in North Carolina set to host a championship in 2017-18 was allowed to keep it. North Carolina sites, including Greensboro Coliseum, were part of the new allocations. 

In 2020, Allen County War Memorial Coliseum, Fort Wayne, Ind., enters the fray as a first-time women’s host, along with first-timers Bon Secours Wellness Arena, Greenville, S.C., and Moody Coliseum, Dallas.

“Fort Wayne has a proud tradition of basketball and hosting visitors, and these events will be excellent opportunities to expand our sports tourism resume,” said Dan O’Connell, president of Visit Fort Wayne, who estimates the economic impact of the women’s event at $1.2 million.

The University of Dayton (Ohio) Arena will remain the host of the men’s tournament’s First Four through 2022, as it has done since 2011. The venue has hosted 117 men’s basketball tournament games, the most of any facility.