Manchester Arena attack: Runners and events mark fifth anniversary BBC
Tag: Arena
Gary Bettman says for NHL ‘to hold any league events here,’ Calgary Flames need new arena – Calgary | Globalnews.ca
National Hockey League commissioner Gary Bettman suggested Tuesday that Calgary may not be able to host any big NHL events in the future without a new arena.
Bettman made the comments while speaking to media on Tuesday evening while in Calgary to attend the Flames’ first playoff game of the 2022 post-season. He suggested that he believes there is an urgency to build a new arena for the NHL team.
“If we’re going to hold any league events here, there needs to be a new building,” he said.
“I don’t think that comes as a surprise to anybody.
“I think it’s a priority for the City of Calgary, I think it’s a priority for the Flames, I think it’s a priority for the people that live in Calgary and want concerts and family shows in addition to NHL hockey.”
Read more:
Arena resuscitation: Coun. Sharp to head up committee overseeing work on Calgary Event Centre
Bettman said that while he is not planning on meeting with city officials during his short trip to Calgary, he is meeting with the Flames’ ownership group on Wednesday and is sure he will “get an update.”
“I’m always optimistic,” he said. “Obviously there’s nothing going on right this second to report that would indicate that there’s going to be a solution immediately, but my hope is that everybody can figure this out.”
Since Mayor Jyoti Gondek was elected, Bettman said he has also had conversations with her about a new building, and added he remains “hopeful” that such a project will one day come to fruition.
Bettman also noted that while he believes the Flames’ arena may be due for a replacement, the one thing that isn’t in need of a tune-up is the fans.
“The fan level of enthusiasm and attachment to this team — the Flames — is always something that I marvel at,” he said. “I think the second night of our playoffs is showing that we’re off to a terrific start.”
The Calgary Flames kicked off their playoff run on Tuesday evening against the Dallas Stars.
© 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
Blue Rodeo rocks Barrie’s Sadlon Arena in a return to live events
Canadian rock band Blue Rodeo took the stage at Barrie’s Sadlon Arena Sunday night, celebrating a return to live events.
“It’s a great feeling to be back playing, and it’s a great feeling to have people come in and be comfortable,” says Blue Rodeo guitarist Jim Cuddy.
The concert was supposed to take place last year but was rescheduled due to COVID.
“There’s a certain amount of release from people that they’re finally out and they feel good and normal, and they’re sharing something with other people,” says Cuddy. “That’s one of the most acute things we learned, is how enjoyable it is to share these experiences,” says Cuddy.
This is the band’s 11th show this year.
Cuddy says it was an adjustment going back to performing live after doing virtual shows during the pandemic.
“We feel that additional energy from the audience because they haven’t, a lot of these people, it’s the first time they’ve been out in the public in this way for two years,” says Cuddy.
Meanwhile, several other in-person events in Barrie are set to return this summer.
Kempenfest will be back after a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19. The popular arts and crafts festival is vital for vendors and performers.
“For some of them, this is their show of the year,” says Kempenfest President Todd Tuckey. “They make all their wears throughout the year, and they come here, they sell out, and they take orders for the rest of the year to keep them going. So it’s a huge event for them. And of course for the city itself and the region, the economic spinoff is over 12 million dollars,” he adds.
The BIA says these live events are essentially a homecoming for businesses and a return to a well-balanced lifestyle for everyone.
“Businesses downtown are tired. They are frustrated because things keep changing, and I don’t blame them for being frustrated. At this point, they want less ebb and flow and more consistency,” says Barrie Councillor Sergio Morales.
As for Blue Rodeo, they will head to Peterborough Monday for their next stop on the Many a Mile Tour. They will continue touring the east coast until mid-April, and tour the west coast later this year.
Arena resuscitation: Coun. Sharp to head up committee overseeing work on Calgary Event Centre – Calgary | Globalnews.ca
Calgary’s new event centre committee held its inaugural meeting Monday to chart a course for the work it’s been tasked with over the coming months.
The meeting, held mostly behind closed doors, saw Ward 1 Coun. Sonya Sharp appointed as committee chair and a meeting schedule approved.
Sharp, Ward 8 Coun. Courtney Walcott and Ward 13 Coun. Dan McLean were the representatives from city council chosen after the committee’s formation was unanimously approved after a lengthy closed door council meeting last month.
Brad Parry, president of Calgary Economic Development, and Deborah Yedlin, president of the Calgary Chamber of Commerce, were also selected to sit on committee as citizen members and Yedlin was elected to serve as vice-chair on Monday.
“The goal is to have an event centre,” Sharp told reporters following the meeting. “It’s not if, it’s when, and this committee is really to make sure it oversees the work of administration and that we get the job done.”
The committee is scheduled to meet once every month through to October, but how much information about what happens in those meetings to be shared with Calgarians remains unclear.
Sharp said their goal is to be transparent with citizens on the progress of the work that’s underway.
“We need to make sure that there is transparency with this,” Sharp said. “Not to say that there wasn’t before, but this is a different time with this project.
“We need to make sure that we’re keeping that trust and confidence with our partners, the citizens and the rest of the business community, and transparency is key to that.”
According to Sharp, the committee will not be “negotiating any sort of deals,” but rather overseeing administration and the work of the third party organization, which will be undertaking that work.
The committee was created after the collapse of the original project with the Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation (CSEC) prior to construction.
The committee is also being tasked with building on the work already undertaken by the event centre assessment committee. That committee, chaired by then-Ward 6 councillor Jeff Davison, was formed in 2018 by the previous city council to develop a partnership framework, financial strategy and determine a location to build a new event centre.
“We’re committed to ensuring that we get this right for the city,” Walcott said. “That’s really at the core of our mandate here: that we provide something that is of high value to the city and that’s something that all of us share in common.”
The previous deal with CSEC came to a close near the end of December 2021 with the corporation citing rising costs as a key issue to not move forward.
In January, city council voted unanimously voted to find a third party to begin talks again with CSEC. Though the third party has yet to be announced, its job will be to gauge CSEC’s interest to come back to the drawing board, along with seeking other parties who may want to be involved with the project.
A report released in summer 2021 pegged the project at $608.5 million, which forced both Flames ownership and the city back to the table to make adjustments to the agreement.
The costs jumped again after the Calgary Planning Commission added several climate resiliency and infrastructure conditions as a normal part of the approval process for the building’s development permit, which totaled around $16 million.
The City of Calgary offered up $6.4 million to assist with the added costs, but Flames ownership notified Mayor Jyoti Gondek just before Christmas that the organization was pulling out of the agreement.
Construction was slated to begin on the project in early 2022.
–with files from Jessika Guse, Global News
© 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
Rekindling new arena talk? First meeting of Calgary’s event centre committee
Calgary’s event centre committee will meet for the first time as part of the effort to restart discussions around a new home for the Calgary Flames.
The committee, which includes citizens and members of council, will hold its inaugural meeting Monday morning.
The meeting is set to begin at 9:30 am and go until 1:00 pm.
The five-person committee includes:
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Ward 1 Coun. Sonya Sharp -
Ward 8 Coun. Courtney Walcott -
Ward 13 Coun. Dan McLean -
Brad Parry, president of Calgary Economic Development -
Deborah Yedlin, president of the Calgary Chamber of Commerce.
The committee came to fruition after the agreement to build an event centre officially fell apart at the start of this year when the city and Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation couldn’t agree on additional funding.
The meeting will be streamed live on the City of Calgary’s website.
Marijuana events could be coming to Muskegon’s arena, baseball stadium
MUSKEGON, MI – Marijuana events, including those allowing consumption, could be held at Muskegon’s downtown arena and baseball stadium under a plan to further “embrace” the city’s burgeoning cannabis industry.
The city’s planning commission endorsed the idea that goes before the city commission later this month.
The proposal would allow temporary events, such as trade shows, at the Mercy Health Arena on West Western Avenue downtown, and at Marsh Field, at the corner of Laketon Avenue and Peck Street.
Muskegon already has been welcoming to recreational marijuana shops, with about two dozen currently operating in the city. Many are in an “overlay district” along Laketon Avenue and Peck Street near the baseball stadium.
Mayor Ken Johnson told MLive it “makes sense” to allow temporary marijuana events at Marsh Field given its proximity to several retail shops.
“Let’s embrace the cannabis industry that’s here,” Johnson said. “Let it be part of our tourism. Let it be part of making us a destination.”
Those wanting to hold a marijuana event would need to apply for a special event license from the city, and a registered temporary marijuana event coordinator would have to apply for a license from the state.
Smoking of marijuana would not be allowed during the any events at the arena, where smoking is not allowed. However, it’s possible that edible cannabis products could be consumed there.
Staff is proposing the entire arena property, including outdoors, be open to marijuana events.
Muskegon City Manager Frank Peterson told MLive that not many other communities are allowing marijuana events in larger facilities, meaning Muskegon could be well positioned to host cannabis-related conventions.
Such events also could be a revenue-generator for the arena and the historic baseball field that is home to the Muskegon Clippers, a summer collegiate team.
“We think the cannabis industry can support these buildings more,” Peterson said.
Rair, a recreational marijuana retail shop in Muskegon, is a sponsor of the arena during Muskegon Lumberjacks games, he said.
Temporary marijuana events currently are allowed at approved marijuana retail locations in the city’s marijuana overlay district. The city commission on March 8 will consider adding the arena and ballfield to the list of permissible event locations.
New Standard Park Place hosted the first such outdoor event in West Michigan, a “Halloweed” party in October 2021.
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Abu Dhabi’s IHC acquires 70% stake in Arena Events for Dhs239.8m – Gulf Business
Abu Dhabi-headquartered multi-sector conglomerate, International Holding Company (IHC), has acquired a 70 per cent stake in Arena Events Group for Dhs239.8m.
IHC acquired the majority stake in Arena, an event structures and entertainment services business, previously listed on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange.
The transaction will see TasHeel Holding Group, Arena’s existing largest shareholder, partner with IHC to further Arena’s operations
Paul Berger, the current Arena EMEA CEO, will transition to become Arena’s global CEO.
Arena is one of the world’s largest event and hospitality structure companies. It provides turnkey event solutions, such as temporary physical structures, modular construction, seating and grandstands, ice rinks, and interior fit out for an extensive portfolio of major sporting, outdoor and leisure events in the UK, North America, Middle East and Asia.
Its latest projects include the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, the two newest Formula 1 Grand Prix races in Miami and Jeddah, and the CJ Cup golf event in Korea.
Newly appointed chairman of the Arena Events Group, Peter Abraam, added: “Arena’s established expertise, 15 global offices, 260-year heritage and 1,000-plus employees across multiple regions remain at the core of enhancing and growing our international footprint and offering. With the largest stock of clear span structure in America, and the second largest inventory of grandstand seating globally, Arena’s ambitions are limitless. IHC aims to provide Arena the backing to strengthen the foothold and capabilities of each of its territory headquarters in the UK, Asia, the Americas, Europe and the Middle East.”
In 2021, IHC reported an all-time-high annual revenue of Dhs28.3bn, an increase of 303 per cent year-on-year. It also reported unaudited net profits of Dhs11.3bn for the period ending December 2021, and increase of an increase of 275 per cent from the Dhs3bn it reported the previous year. IHC’s total assets increased to Dhs87bn by the end oflast year, up 520 per cent from Dhs14bn in 2020.
