Saturday, February 23, 2008
Hufnagel is not working for the Chevrolet Centre.
YOUNGS-TOWN — Matt Hufnagel, former executive director of Chevrolet Centre, is back in Youngstown this week doing promotional work for the Golf Expo.
The Elmira, N.Y., native was with Chevy Centre since its 2005 opening. He started as marketing director and was promoted to executive director in February 2006. He resigned in December 2006 after an audit revealed that $700 was missing from Chevy Centre’s on-site parking receipts.
Hufnagel said he has been promoting shows in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Ohio for the past year. He also has worked for Shockley Productions, a Michigan promotions company, and also as general manager of an exposition center in Birch Run, Mich.
For the Golf Expo, which is this weekend at Chevy Centre, Hufnagel is working for Golf Headquarters, a national retail chain with stores in Boardman and Niles. Golf Headquarters is handling the promotional work for the Expo, on behalf of Eric Ryan Productions, the promoter.
Golf Headquarters is “the force behind the Expo,” said Eric Ryan, president of Eric Ryan Productions. “They are the ones with the connections to line up the vendors.”
Ryan is the interim executive director of Chevrolet Centre, a position he will hold until the city hires a new management firm.
Ryan stressed that Hufnagel is not working for Chevrolet Centre. “He is not getting a check from Chevy Centre,” said Ryan. “He is being paid by Eric Ryan Productions and Golf Headquarters.”
The Golf Expo is an annual event in which golfers can sample the latest equipment and watch golf demonstrations from professionals.
Hufnagel told The Vindicator Friday that he lives in the Detroit area but splits his time between Michigan; Elmira, N.Y., where he has a real estate business; and the Mahoning Valley, where his girlfriend’s family lives.