COUNCIL BLUFFS -- If Lincoln voters this month greenlight a new events arena, it will become the latest member of a club that has gotten only bigger since Council Bluffs opened its Mid-America Center in 2002.
When the 8,000-seat arena and convention center were opened, the Qwest Center Omaha, Tyson Events Center in Sioux City, Iowa, and Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines did not yet exist. Now Lincoln officials want to be the latest competition for booking attractions in the region.
“For a long time, we had nothing,” said Council Bluffs Mayor Tom Hanafan. “But now we may have too much.”
Since the Qwest Center opened in 2003, the Mid-America Center has seen some concert and event promoters choose to stay west of the river. But Council Bluffs officials said they weren't too concerned that a new facility a little farther west would put another dent in the city's bottom line.
The city-owned facility in Council Bluffs requires a steady influx of taxpayer money to stay afloat. In recent years, city contributions have ranged from a low of $321,000 in 2007 to $577,000 in 2009.
Those are significant payouts, but the situation isn't wholly negative, said Art Hill, Council Bluffs' finance director. “We have to look at the positive impacts,” Hill said, referring to increases in hotel/motel and sales taxes.
A new arena in Lincoln could be both beneficial and detrimental to the Mid-America Center, said Hans Detlefsen of HVS Convention, Sports and Entertainment Consulting in Chicago. Detlefsen has not researched the proposed Lincoln facility.
Based on his general knowledge of the industry, Detlefsen said some promoters could be more attracted to the region if given the option of booking events in two locations a drivable distance apart. But some events might choose Lincoln over the Mid-America Center, he said.
Regardless of the proposed Lincoln arena, the Mid-America Center is a “busy building,” said Charles Schilling, general manager.
This year, the arena and convention center have hosted the Omaha Press Club Show, Disney on Ice, the Omaha Bridal Network's 2010 Bridal Showcase, the Omaha Entertainment and Arts Awards, metro Omaha's official Oscar Night America Party, mixed martial arts and several concerts. In mid-April, the Iowa Blackhawks opened their indoor football season.
“We're just really focused on 8,000 seats and 100,000 square feet of space and how we can do that well,” Schilling said.
To that end, the Council Bluffs City Council recently approved spending as much as $6 million to make parking lot repairs and improve the public address systems, among other changes.
“We've had a pretty good year,” Hanafan said. “We just hope it keeps going.”
Contact the writer:
444-1310, elizabeth.ahlin@owh.com
Copyright ©2012 Omaha World-Herald®. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, displayed or redistributed for any purpose without permission from the Omaha World-Herald.
