IS IT TRUE? August 11, 2011 Special Evening Edition
IS IT TRUE that there is much speculation that a decision will be made with respect to the winning bidder for the hotel next to the arena tomorrow followed by an announcement on Tuesday?…that the City County Observer believes that such speculation is without merit because there has not been any time to do a full vetting and make a competent recommendation since last Friday when the choice of London Witte was announced?…that this vetting process desperately needs to be seen as fair and objective by the people of Evansville and in particular by the media of Evansville?
IS IT TRUE that Sara Miller who is an appointed member of the Evansville Redevelopment Commission is also a Vice President of Commercial Lending at Old National Bank?…that Ms. Miller in her role of making recommendations on commercial loans has access to all of the state of the art tools and analysis packages used to qualify or disqualify her applicants and their projects as credit worthy?…that one of the tools that Ms. Miller has at her disposal is the ability to pull a Dun & Bradstreet report on both the Kunkel Group and Prime Lodging along with any predecessor companies that may be applicable such as Verville Construction?…that the City County Observer challenges Ms. Miller to do exactly that and to make those Dun & Bradstreet reports available to each and every member of the ERC in Executive Session?…that this step should have been taken already so that if there are any red flags associated with payments or terms they would already be identified?
IS IT TRUE that ERC Commissioner Greg Elpers is out of town and will not be in attendance at tomorrow’s meeting?…that as a licensed CPA in a prestigious firm that Mr. Elpers should be using the skills and tools that are available to him in his day job to better serve the people of Evansville in the politically appointed position that he willfully accepted?
IS IT TRUE that the other item that may be on the ERC docket tomorrow is the latest casualty of a lack of planning and that is the Evansville IceMen’s status with respect to the new Arena?…that the IceMen are scheduled in the pro-forma developed specifically for the Arena to be a full 28% of all of the events that will be there in any given year?…that once again it seems as though the intention of the Arena management is to force unfavorable terms down the throat of the prime tenant of the Arena?…that it has been reported that under the terms offered by the City of Evansville that the IceMen will have to sell 3,500 tickets per game to break even?…that the IceMen have never ever drawn more than about 1,900 to a home game at Swonder and typically draw about 1,200 at a very affordable price of $7 per ticket?
IS IT TRUE that to force a situation that requires 300% growth on day one to break even is oppressive and irresponsible on the part of the Arena management?…that as the City County Observer published last week that a deal for the City of Evansville to get $2 per ticket with no limits would be both fair and equitable?…that the City could actually come out very well in such an arrangement if the Arena is really the draw that it has been alleged to be?
Mr. Editor,
Just out of curiousity what do you think that the meeting is for tomorrow? Are your sources lining up with mine? Maybe someday in the near furure we can have a cup of Joe and discuss things at a deeper level.
My sources indicate the tomorrow will be very much about the IceMen. To that extent our sources line up. I cannot however imagine that a decision on the hotel could be possible in such short order if the vetting process is to have any legitimacy.
I don’t have any inside information on the IceMen, their negotiations with the Arena moguls, all that jazz. Hell I don’t even understand the game of ice hockey. But I cannot wait until they start playing at the Arena, and visiting the Main Gate sports bar after the games. That club will make a great gathering place for the players and their fans!
Here’s an article from the C&P on why hockey is so important to the arena:
http://www.courierpress.com/news/2008/aug/20/boost-hinges-on-hockey/
Bears
The C&P article you reference suggests:
>>”That financial gain also hinges on Evansville attracting a minor-league hockey team, one that would have 38 home dates with an average attendance of 3,500 per game. The study assumes the hockey team would be the main tenant, with the University of Evansville men’s and women’s basketball teams having the second most dates with 30.”<<
I have seen no projections that come close to 38 home games for the Icemen.
Looks like a doomed venture to me. …
Let the record show that Thursday night, August 11, 2011, someone “put on the feedbag” for the Icemen at The Main Gate Sports Bar. They were set up on the upper level. All the players and girlfriends, wives. Some sort of presentation made by a bunch of dorks in black suits, who we can call The Men in Black. Geary was there, and was all smiles. The Men in Black were not so happy. Maybe MIB were the Arena’s crack law team, and Geary got the best of them.
I think it’s great that the Main Gate will be the IceMen’s roost after the home games! That’s what the club was opened for, to serve Arena guests and the home team. A great place for people to meet and mix. And since the kitchen staff was upgraded by the addition of a fantastic cook by the name of Monkey Tail, the catfish sandwich is the best in Evansville. He’s pretty damned good with the other menu offerings too!
The arena really needs to calculate the attendance for the icemen at about 1500 for break even, base their fee on that. Give them a cut over that mark, make it a per ticket, a percentage or whatever. We need to encourage their growth. What about the concessions, who gets that money and do they share in the take? Don’t force the guys to go elsewhere or lose money here. Make it a two year deal and look at the revenue after that.
We completely agree with your analysis. The correct break even deal should be based on the average attendance a Swonder last year. That number is between 1,200 and 1,500.
I agree as well. Treat the team the same way a decent club owner treats a good band … a cut of the gate draw over a set benchmark. A small percentage of the concessions seems reasonable too. Like if the IceMen can draw the kinds of fans that purchase concessions above the per-ticket benchmark, why should they not share in the wealth that they draw thru the gates?
Ice Hockey in Evansville, is like Baseball and Evansville, both need upgrades to be successful period. Same old Evansville, this should of been done way before building a arena for hockey. Still say no problem with new arena, just wrong location. Sell Roberts to private investors if possible, use money to fix sewers, plus competition will make both venues better.
Possibly true. I thought the best location for the Arena was the Martin development between Morgan and the Lloyd, on Crosspointe Blvd. Two solid connections to I-164, aka I-69. Other friends suggest the old K-mart, now Giant Flee Market on So. Ky. at I-164.
But let’s face it … the Arena is here. It’s downtown on the Walkway. The IceMen are here. Why not move on and make the best of it? Instead of continuing to beat a dead horse, let’s get on board and promote the Walkway, promote the Arena, promote the IceMen, promote Evansville. Otherwise we promote longterm debt.
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