The city of Casper is enjoying huge successes after turning over the running of the Casper Events Center last fall over to Spectra Venue Management. Why shouldn't Cheyenne's mayor and City Council do the same?
By D. Reed Eckhardt
Cheyenne's new mayor, Marian Orr, has made a big deal out of trying to identify new sources of revenue for the city. She needs it, given the state of Wyoming's economy. The days of the Legislature rushing in to fill empty holes in municipalities' budgets around the
state are over -- perhaps for good. Coal is not coming back, and efforts to diversify the economy, while wise, will take years before they bear any real fruit.
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| Sinclair Oil now sponsors the box office at the Casper Events Center. |
One answer to Orr's quest lies about 180 miles to the north. There, the Casper City Council has entered into a five-year contract with Spectra Venue Management from Philadephia to run the Events Center there. A recent article in the Casper Star-Tribune (the attached photo is also from the CST) outlines the successes so far -- in just eight months. Among them are:
-- Increased corporate sponsorships. Companies have paid to have their names on the box office, concession stands, and first aid station. A banner flies from the Events Center rafter, advertising JIM Group Hotels, which also owns the local Denny's restaurant.
-- Advertising revenue is at $285,000, 75 percent of which is new money.
-- Ticket sales are up 10 percent; Spectra hopes to double that increase.
-- The venue is seeing greater use, and there is more diversity in programming. Spectra's ties, for example, will bring in the Foo Fighters this winter since that band will also be going to the management group's venue in Idaho. Other top names brought in since last fall include Elton John, Snoop Dog, and Eric Church. Rapper Lil Wayne was booked, though he had to cancel.
The main goal of all of this -- besides improving the quality of life in Casper, -- is to ease Casper's budget problems. It currently is subsidizing the Events Center at the rate of nearly $1 million a year. The city's contract with Spectra encourages it to succeed: The management group gets 20 percent of all savings. Of course, it also is paid for its work -- $130,000 a year.
Cheyenne's Civic Center faces similar challenges. It is subsidized to the tune of $200,000 a year; it is underutilized; and its offerings couldn't be more stale. Yes, there is an occasional surprise event, but for the most part, the schedule is dominated by its symphony concerts and its boring annual series. If there is a less innovative manager than Dru Rhola -- you'd be hard pressed to find him or her.
One way that Cheyenne can be made more attractive to the young professionals it says it seeks would be to hold more events that appeal to this group. That obviously is what is happening in Casper, but it won't here under current Civic Center leadership. Bringing in guitarist Joe Bonamassa -- again -- and singer Bonnie Ryatt, two events currently scheduled for this fall, will not get the job done.
If the happenings in Casper are any indicator, the hiring of a management group to run the Cheyenne Events Center would be a winner for all -- for the quality of life here and the city's budget. (One idea: How about selling naming rights to the Civic Center?) And maybe that management group could handle the Ice and Events Center as well -- it gets a $120,000 subsidy from the city's budget as well.
Mayor Orr claims to want fresh ideas for Cheyenne's city government. It is time for her to put the privatization of the Civic Center on her agenda.
D. Reed Eckhardt is the former editor of the Wyoming Tribune Eagle.
So sorry to hear that this publication finds "the schedule is dominated by its boring annual series and symphony concerts." I'm wondering if the author has come to any Cheyenne Symphony concerts? I'm just a player who comes up from Denver, but the Cheyenne Symphony is a gem, bringing a wide range of classical and educational programming to Cheyenne. To my eye, it looks as if our concerts are near capacity. The symphony has collaborated with the public schools in bringing kids to concerts tailored for them, and inspired young visual artists as well. Cheyenne's schools have some very fine music educators and strong programs, it is fortunate that they have a high quality local symphony as role models. Whether or not the Civic Center could and should satiate the cultural tastes of Publius Wyoming's editor, authors, and readers is not really an issue for me. But singling out the symphony as "boring" vs the reality that we've presented Mahler's Second and Beethoven's Ninth Symphonies as well as a cornucopia of other musical pillars of Western Civilization is creating significant cognitive dissonance for me. Those works are pillars because they continue to move hearts and minds and their beauty and emotional content remains relevant to human beings. If the local museum had pictures by Monet and van Gogh would you call them boring and question their place in the community? Cheyenne is lucky to have the an orchestra the caliber of it's symphony, a lot of people have worked hard to make that happen and it is a community treasure. It is completely unnecessary to dis those efforts to make your point.
ReplyDeleteckatsarelis: After reviewing your comment, I see that my phrasing in the blog was wrong, and I have fixed it, I think. I did not mean to say or imply symphony concerts are boring; I enjoy them immensely. What I meant to say was that the center's annual series is boring. My bad.
DeletePrivatizing the Civ Center would be a good move. I love the Cheyenne Symphony, but the enter's booking often trike me as old-fashioned and white-male.
ReplyDeleteCheyenne's close proximity to Denver and larger venues has always been and will always be the biggest drawback in booking those less boring acts. I think the author of this blog is venting his personal vendetta against Cheyenne and really ought to consider moving somewhere he would be happier.
ReplyDeleteVicki: I've lived in Cheyenne for nearly 20 years and have loved every minute of it. This is not about a personal vendetta; it's about trying to solve city budget problems and create a better quality of life. You and I may disagree on how or if that should occur, but the "love it or leave it" approach is one of Cheyenne's bigger problems. We can retain the best of Cheyenne while making it more attractive to potential newcomers. Embracing the old won't insulate Cheyenne from the new, but it will leave the community further behind as it seeks to compete for modern industries and the people they employ. Love it or leave it? No thanks. Love it but it admit it can be better? That's where you will find me and many others who live here as well. -- Reed
ReplyDeleteReed - I hardly think singling out the Civic Center, along with eliminating Dru' s position and pricing the symphony out of its venue, will accomplish all that. Newcomers need jobs first to attract them here.
ReplyDelete