Cut in Chevy ticket tax expected

By David Skolnick

The admission tax reduction could go into effect as early as August.

YOUNGSTOWN — The cost to attend an event at the Chevrolet Centre is expected to get cheaper.

City council on Wednesday will consider reducing the admission tax charged on tickets to events at the center from 9.5 percent to 5.5 percent.

If council approves the change, it would probably go into effect Aug. 1, said Kyle Miasek, the city’s deputy finance director.

The 9.5 percent tax generated about $82,000 for the city between February and May, he said. With a 5.5 percent tax during that same time period, the city’s profit would have been about $47,500. An amount for June wasn’t available Monday.

“It’s the city’s desire to make all events more affordable,” Miasek said about reducing the tax.

Instead of paying $4.75 in admission tax on a ticket with a face value of $50 under the current policy, a center patron would pay $2.75 in admission tax on the same ticket under the proposed change.

The reduction wouldn’t impact the cost of events at the center that are on sale such as the July 25 WWE RAW wrestling show and the Sept. 17 Blue Man Group conwcert. Contracts for those events are already signed with the 9.5 percent tax included, Miasek said.

Though the city would receive less money in admissiown tax on each event, the proposed tax reduction should help business at the arena, he said. The center lost more than $275,000 during its first two years of operation, October 2005 to September 2007. It’s made about $120,000 since then.

A price reduction should attract more patrons to the city-owned entertainment and sports facility, Miasek said.

Also, promoters have told the city that they’d be willing to book more events at the center if the admission tax is reduced, Miasek said.

Besides promoters, SMG, the Philadelphia company hired by the city to help with the Chevrolet Centre, said the 9.5 percent amount was too high, he said. The 5.5 percent figure is more in line with the national average for admission taxes, he said.

The city approved the flat 9.5 percent tax in June 2007, to take effect Oct. 1, 2007, in an effort to make most center events less expensive. The tax replaced a parking and facility fee of $3 to $3.50 a ticket. Because of contractual obligations, tickets for events as recent as March included the fee rather than the tax.

The tax went directly to the city and not to the operators of the center. In October 2007, International Coliseums Co., which managed the center for two years, sued the city claiming a breach of contract — pointing to the change from a fee to a tax as one way the city violated the deal. ICC and the city settled the matter out of court later that month.

The city was to use the admission tax for improvements and projects on and near the center, and for parking. The city pays $16,575 a month to USA Parking Systems Inc., the Cleveland company, for about 2,000 spaces at downtown parking decks and lots for center patrons.

The tax has covered the parking costs, but not enough was generated for improvements and projects, Miasek said.

Also Wednesday, council will consider legislation to permit the board of control to hire a company to construct a digital marquee in front of the center as well as two on Interstate 680 at the north and south entrances into the city.

The signs should be done by the fall, Miasek said.

skolnick@vindy.com