The owners of the Port Huron Icehawks (IHL) have withdrawn their offer to manage the team’s downtown home, McMorran Arena.
After landing the contract to manager McMorran Arena, the Kinney Management Group has withdrawn its bid to manage the downtown Port Huron facility, saying the company must focus on other expansion opportunity and day-to-day operations of the Port Huron Icehawks (IHL).
"With the Kinney companies growing our west coast operation and expanding into Europe, just as with any city, we must make decisions to allocate resources, manpower and capital towards those activities that provide the best chance for success and future growth," Kinney Management Group General Counsel Robert Lahiff said in a letter to city officials. "Thus, we are returning our focus to our core business functions."
The Port Huron City Council and McMorran Authority Board spent weeks debating the future of the arena, soliciting bids from a variety of arena-management firms, including SMG. Going with Kinney and the Icehawks was hailed as a victory for local management.
