YOUNGSTOWN ARENA PROJECT Board awaits end to money dispute

The site selection report suggests YSU will be a main tenant, but the university has never expressed that level of interest, a retired university official said.
By ROGER G. SMITH
CITY HALL REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- So much to do, so little authority to do it.
The civic-center board finds itself in that spot, at least for now. Board members spent about 90 minutes Thursday knocking around what to do next.
Everything they talked about has to get done, probably simultaneously.
The recent report outlining the good and bad points of six potential downtown sites must be analyzed and questioned. Talk must start about the role potential arena users will play. Eminent domain and its role in the project must be fleshed out. Community input and support must be generated.
But the group came back to one constant: There isn't much it can do until settling its role with the city council that brought it together.
What's being disputed: The two sides want to clarify a lingering dispute over who controls $26.8 million in federal funds secured for the project so far.
A resolution could come soon. Council's finance committee wants to meet with the arena board's executive committee next week, said Leonard Schiavone, board chairman.
"We are anxious. We are willing. Hopefully without much further delay, we'll have a meeting," he said.
Until then, the board will become more familiar with the six potential sites.
Board members will tour the possible sites next week, inviting city arena consultant Tom Chema and council members. The board doesn't want to be accused of not moving forward while it's waiting for council, said Robert VanSickle, vice chairman.
Input for possible tenants: After that, calling together potential users will be important, members said. Potential tenants must be given input into the site and the rest of the project, they said.
Maybe the most important will be Youngstown State University.
The site selection report reads like a "book full of assertions" that YSU will be a main tenant, said board member Gil Peterson.
YSU, however, never has expressed that level of interest in the project, Peterson said. He was a top university official until retiring recently.
The school stands to lose $200,000 to $300,000 in revenue if it moves events out of its own gym, he said.
President David Sweet has talked about how a new arena must meet YSU's needs or the school can't be part of the project, VanSickle said.
In other business, the Cleveland law firm of Calfee, Halter & amp; Griswold is expressing interest in the project. The firm has outlined for the board its experience with Cleveland's Gateway stadiums project.