Several cities have been led astray by financial projections made by Global Entertainment in the course of funding and building new arenas — and now the cities are stuck with the unprofitable facilities, according to a long report in The New York Times.
This story lays out how Global Entertainment pitched cities like Rio Rancho, Wenatchee and Youngstown on the profitability of 6,500-seat arenas, while at the same time working to put a pro Central Hockey League team into the mix. In several cases, the hockey team didn’t work out, and neither did the arena, which generally were shunned by larger concert promoters because the venues were too small.
So the cities are stuck with the bills: instead of reaping the profits from arena operations, cities are laying off employees and cutting back on essential services to cover arena debt.
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