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Youngstown’s Covelli Centre set a financial record in 2016
Facility generates $726K in operating surplus, admission tax in 2016
YOUNGSTOWN
The Covelli Centre set a financial record in 2016 generating $726,710 in operating surplus and admission tax at the city-owned facility.
It was the eighth-consecutive year with an operating surplus and the fifth-straight year in which its revenue was more than the annual principal and interest the city pays for its share of the center’s construction.
“We are extremely happy with the money brought to the city,” said Mayor John A. McNally. JAC Management Group “does a great job managing the facility for us.”
The center’s 2016 monetary figures were provided Monday to The Vindicator after an audit of the facility’s finances.
The center had a $435,183 operating surplus, and the city made $291,527 from a 5.5 percent admission tax on tickets last year.
The 2016 operating surplus is the second most for a year for the center since it started operating in October 2005. The record is $485,234 in 2014.
The admission tax last year was the most collected, beating the old record of $221,485 received in 2014.
The total of $726,710 between the two revenue sources last year was the most for the center beating the old record of $706,719 in 2014.
“We’re very pleased with the year,” said Eric Ryan, the center’s executive director and JAC president. “We are thrilled that [2016] was the year in which the most money was given back to the city from arena operations in the center’s history.”
Built into the operating surplus is $49,066 in additional food-and-beverage profits as a result of having JAC handle those services for the indoor arena rather than an outside firm that did such work until mid-2012.
The center had 83 events last year that attracted nearly 200,000 people to the facility, he said. That included five sold-out concerts by Elton John, Carrie Underwood, Barry Manilow, Lionel Richie and Keith Urban.
“Attracting major concerts is our main source of revenue,” Ryan said. “We do as many community events as we can do, but it’s economically challenging. We need to do the major events to generate revenue for the facility.”
At its community room, the facility hosted more than 80 events including city meetings, sponsor gatherings, private parties and seminars.
The center finished the last quarter of 2016 with its second best October-to-December with an operating surplus of $101,932.
The center paid $500,000 in principal and $199,000 in interest last year for a total of $699,000. The operating surplus and admission tax for 2016 was $726,710.
The city borrowed $11.9 million in 2005 to pay its portion of building the $45 million facility. The city still owes $9.76 million in principal. It paid nothing in principal until 2011 and since then has increased its annual amount.
The plan is to make a $600,000 principal payment with about $171,000 in interest this year, said Kyle Miasek, the city’s deputy finance director.
The center has a fund balance of about $126,000, Miasek said.
While a budget is being finalized for the center for 2017, Ryan said the first half of the year looks to be slow while the last six months is shaping up to be strong.