The Grace Hartman Amphitheatre at Bell Park needs another 500 seats and a roof. The cost of the expansion and roof is pegged at $5.2 million. The city has $1.4 million set aside for this but it needs another $3.8 million and has been trying since January 2014 to find corporate sponsors to help cover some of the expenses. The problem is that the Amphitheater must retain the name “Grace Hartman” and so far, no sponsors have stepped forward.

The amphitheatre was reconstructed in 2011 at a cost of $5 million.

Currently, the amphitheater operates on annual expenses of about $200,000 while it brings in revenue of about $60,000. The additional seats will increase the seating capacity to over 1200 fixed seating plus more on the grass behind the seats. This will produce more revenue for the group booking the facility, but it is not likely to increase the revenue much to the city. It is also going to increase the annual expenses, so whatever additional revenue is earned will most likely be eaten up by the increased expenses.

The deadline for sponsors to submit proposals has been extended until September 16, 2014.

The new city council elected in the October 27, 2014 election is going to be faced with a touch decision with respect to the amphitheatre. Should we spend another $5.2 million on the expansion and roof and continue to operate the facility at a loss of $140,000 a year or just leave it as it is until we get the funds from a sponsor?

It is a beautiful venue for concerts and performances, but we have such a short outdoor season. Only 30 to 40 events are booked annually between April and September, averaging about 6 events per month. So this would mean an investment of $5.2 million for about 40 events per year in order to lose $140,000 per year in net cost.

The cost of maintaining the amphitheatre is not an issue since this is something that the city needs to have available in Bell Park. The problem is with the extra expense of the roof and expansion and if this is going to increase the revenue much as a result. If it generates an additional $100,000 to $200,000 per year in corporate sponsorship, then it may be worth the investment. But that is a big if.