Commissioners are moving forward with a publicly owned indoor arena that will be the largest of its kind in Warren County. But not all officials are convinced it’s a good investment.
The Warren County Port Authority will issue roughly $125 million in revenue bonds purchased by private investors to finance the arena. The hockey and concert venue is a focal part of Renaissance Pointe, a $200 million development on a 50-acre lot located alongside Interstate-75 in Middletown.
On April 28, commissioners, all of whom are Republican, voted 2-1 to approve funding for the arena, which will be owned by the Port Authority, the county’s economic development agency. The one commissioner who voted against the deal told The Enquirer it wasn’t worth the risk.
“I’m not mad at my colleagues,” said Commissioner Dave Young, who voted against it. “There are jurisdictions that would really jump up and down at this opportunity because it does create other opportunities for revenue. But Warren County is already firing on all cylinders.”
“Tourism is our No. 1 industry, so we don’t need to take a big risk,” he added. “I just don’t think it’s worth the risk.”
Plans for Warren County’s largest indoor arena come as Cincinnati and Hamilton County officials consider where and how to build a modern arena to replace Heritage Bank Center at The Banks.
Commissioners Tom Grossmann and Shannon Jones voted to approve the funding. Both said the county needed to look into more opportunities for sales tax revenue in case property tax is eliminated.
“While I don’t think the government should be running the hockey business or event center business, I do believe that we can make investments in our community to help grow business and sales revenue, and help all of our businesses in the county with projects like this,” Grossmann said before voting to support the project.
What’s in the arena plan?
According to Warren County Commissioners’ April 28 board meeting, here’s what’s planned for the unnamed 161,000-square-foot arena:
Warren County created an economic development fund using casino dollars collected from Miami Valley Gaming. If the arena falls short of its projected revenue, and there’s a shortfall in bond repayment, the county will use $12.5 million from this fund to pay it.
Middletown also committed $12.5 million to back the development.
Commissioners disagree over arena proposal
During the meeting, project stakeholders shared positive projections for the arena’s expected revenue.
But a presentation by Tim Flaherty, CEO of Entertainment Events, Inc., the concert promotions company that would manage bookings, got tense.
Young said he didn’t want the county to get into the “concert promotions business.” Hockey games will make up a smaller portion of revenue at the stadium than concerts and other events.
“I don’t like the structure,” Young told The Enquirer. “This started as sports tourism and hockey, and out of the $20 million of projected revenue, only 15% is actually coming in from ice hockey.”
Young also disliked that if a performer doesn’t sell as many tickets as projected, the arena owner ‒ the Port Authority ‒ loses money.
“Our name is at risk. Our brand is at risk. They’re not gonna be challenging you when this goes south,” Grossmann said to Flaherty, referring to Warren County taxpayers. “They’re gonna be challenging us.”
Middletown City Council also needs to vote on the deal. Councilman Paul Lolli said council supports it. During the Warren County meeting, he said Middletown has invested nearly $18.9 million in Renaissance Pointe, which sits across the interstate from the city’s defunct Towne Mall.
Young asked Lolli why Middletown wasn’t issuing the bonds. Lolli said he wasn’t part of those discussions.
“From my perspective, it seems like it’s your project, but yet it’s going to be owned by the Warren County Port,” Young said. “Do we potentially want to backstop in investing in your project?”
New hockey team hinges on arena
The United States Hockey League, a junior hockey league with 16 teams in the Midwest, plans to add four new teams. One of them will be based in Middletown, if Renaissance Pointe gets this arena. No team name has been announced.
The league is a training ground for aspiring pro hockey players ages 16-20. They play 32 home games per season and most of the games are on the weekend, according to IceWorks Ventures Inc., a league franchise owner. The team would be the arena’s anchor tenant, and each game draws an average of 2,400 fans.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Publicly owned arena gets mixed support from suburban commissioners
Reporting by Victoria Moorwood, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
