Core Entertainment Updates

[BCTed]

Originally Posted by PBRSTREETGANG

Paragraph away: what's so ridiculous about repurposing Copps into a better used, shared facility instead of having it sit squat, idle, ugly, and aging for too much of the year?

He put out an idea in a public forum; he didn't say that his plan was perfect--this is how a community talks to itself. There's some merit to his ideas, and Ryerson's spearheading of MLG has worked out tremendously.

There is a difference between "not perfect" and "not at all thought out or reasoned." I will go with a few points instead of a few outright paragraphs:

- Trying to completely recreate something that has been an apparent success somewhere else does not guarantee success in Hamilton. The situation here feels far from "somewhat parallel" to that in Toronto.
- What would the goal of something like this be? The current arena is doing no harm as is, there is already lots of ground-floor retail space at the base of the arena in Jackson Square, including a full gym (GoodLife), a grocery store that is opening soon, and loads of empty space in JS and the City Centre in which you could place any other type of retail. There is also no historical preservation aspect as with Maple Leaf Gardens.
- I do not know much about architecture, but it feels like this would be an extremely difficult conversion project. Maple Leaf Gardens' exterior is a flat box, while at least part of Copps follows the contours of the upper deck seating, which would have to be pulled inward. A supermarket or whatever would have to be below ground.
- The Maple Leaf Gardens project cost $60 million. I do not see nearly as much appetite for spending anywhere near this amount for something like this at Copps. What was done in Toronto was done in a very built-up downtown, while there are still loads of large empty spaces in downtown Hamilton and chances to start fresh instead of retrofitting existing buildings. No company would offer $15 million or whatever for naming rights --- Copps Coliseum in Hamilton simply does not have any cachet compared to Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto.
- Copps is not "woefully lacking in size and capacity for a modern-day [NHL] hockey". It is small in terms of luxury boxes, but those could conceivably be added.
- The thrown-out number of 5000 seats for the new arena is too small for the Hamilton Bulldogs. It feels like Larry has no idea how many seats Copps has, nor does he know how large NHL arenas are, nor does he know how large AHL arenas are.
- Even if the modified arena were to hold 9000 seats, it would do away with event opportunities that would repeat great big-name event experiences that Copps has brought to Hamilton in the past (U2, Bruce Springsteen, Britney Spears [three times], Lady Gaga [upcoming], Pavarotti [almost], NHL exhibition and regular-season games, NBA exhibition games). Copps Coliseum has contributed to giving Hamilton a big-city feel.
- The new Tiger-Cats stadium will probably be less than ideal for concerts, could only accommodate them in warm months, would very likely have poorer acoustics than Copps, and would bring back the same disruptions to the neighbourhood that had basically eliminated concerts at Ivor Wynne Stadium.
- This article is such a basic non-thought-out brain dump that I do not even buy it as the stated "beginning thoughts" and I would expect more of a former mayor of the city.

[matt602]

Completely agree with all those points.

[durandy]

I think they should just tear the thing down. Of all the historic buildings and functional schools that are in process of being degraded and destroyed, this is one building that has no redeeming qualities. Lets erase the names Vic Copps and Lloyd Jackson once and for all. These men did no good for the city, making rash bets on poorly thought out plans for urban renewal.

[Beedok]

Originally Posted by durandy

I think they should just tear the thing down. Of all the historic buildings and functional schools that are in process of being degraded and destroyed, this is one building that has no redeeming qualities. Lets erase the names Vic Copps and Lloyd Jackson once and for all. These men did no good for the city, making rash bets on poorly thought out plans for urban renewal.

I like Jackson Square.

[BCTed]

Originally Posted by Beedok

I like Jackson Square.

I like both Jackson Square and Copps Coliseum. No need to tear either of them down.

[SteelTown]

Lady Gaga concert is cancelled, likely will be rescheduled.

https://twitter.com/ladygaga/status/301452979041607683

@ladygaga: To the fans in Chicago Detroit & Hamilton I hope you can forgive me, as it is nearly impossible for me to forgive myself. Im devasted & sad

[drpgq]

Lumineers are playing Copps, April 30th, moved from the Convention Centre. I'm surprised there's that much demand for them.

[drpgq]

Also Rush at Copps, July 6th.

[thistleclub]

Two words earned The Who's Copps show a spot on the cover of today's Toronto Sun.

[mattgrande]

Rock star uses bad word, more at 11.

[Dr Awesomesauce]

Nice to see Townsend still likes f*ckin' people's sh*t up.

[SteelTown]

An Evening with Oprah tour comes to Hamilton. April 13th for Copps.

[thistleclub]

Live Nation revenue up 8%
Concert and ticketing giant notched $5.8 billion in 2012
(Variety, Feb 26 2013)

Live Nation Entertainment announced its yearly and fourth-quarter earnings on Tuesday, boasting an 8% increase in revenue for the year, despite losses due to the departure of executive chairman Irving Azoff.

The live music, ticketing and sponsorship giant posted total yearly revenue of $5.8 billion, with an adjusted operating income of $459 million (up 4.8%). Concert revenue notched the biggest gains, registering $3.8 billion (up 10.4%), with ticketing up 4% at $1.3 billion. Management division Artist Nation was nearly flat with just under $400 million, and sponsorship and advertising gained 7.4% to $248 million.

Quarterly revenue for the period ending Dec. 31 was up 21% from the fourth quarter of 2011, tallying $1.4 billion, thanks to the presence of both Madonna and Lady Gaga on the touring circuit during the quarter. Yearly figures were likewise goosed by the Summer Olympics in London.

LNE booked a loss of $5.5 million due to costs associated with the December departure of Azoff, as well as a $62.7 million impairment charge to Artist Nation.

Total concert attendance increased slightly to 48.7 million, with 147 million tickets sold at a gross value of $9.1 billion.

In a shareholder conference call, Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino noted that the company was looking to build on secondary ticketing in 2013, as well as eyeing electronic dance music and festivals as key growth areas, with fest attendance rising 30% over the past year, and EDM attendance doubling in the same period.

LNE COO Joe Berchtold noted that artists who had their first hit song in the 2000s represented half of all amphitheater tours last year, fueling optimism that the aging evergreens who have historically propped up the touring business will begin to find younger replacements. Rapino highlighted the recently announced Justin Timberlake-Jay-Z summer tour as a particular bright spot -- "a reaffirmation that there's real life in younger acts" -- as well as the multi-show Country Megaticket packages that the company began offering in 2011.

Rapino noted in a statement: "Looking forward to 2013, I am confident that we will continue the successful growth of the core business. As of the end of 2012, we have sold nine million concert tickets for 2013 shows, a 58% increase from a year ago. Our ticketing re-platforming project is in its last full year of investment and will deliver major product innovations for clients and fans throughout the year."

[thistleclub]

Bulldogs sign new three-year lease with Copps, extend affiliation with Habs
(Hamilton Spectator, Mar 1 2013)

The Hamilton Bulldogs signed a new three-year lease with Copps Coliseum and a new affiliation extension with the Montreal Canadiens at a news conference today. The deal will mean the Dogs will have been the farm team of the Habs for 11 years by the time the contract expires. It’s believed there will be an additional two-year option available on both parts of the deal, meaning the Dogs could still be playing at Copps as the baby Canadiens until the 2017-18 season.

That the Bulldogs are signing a new lease would hardly be a surprise since the HECFI board granted the Dogs exclusive rights to negotiate a new deal a couple months ago, choosing the American Hockey League team over a junior team — the Erie Otters — that was looking to move to Hamilton. The timing of the event isn’t a coincidence either since Friday is the first day Global Spectrum takes of control of Copps.

[bluevue]

I'm glad the city got 'out of their way' on this won, and took the high road to help maintain a great relationship with the local owner who has done a lot for this city with the team and community. Glad to see the bulldogs staying put!

[thistleclub]

Rock star Townshend apologizes to pint-sized fan
(Toronto Sun, Joe Warmington, Feb 28 2013)

Who says an old-time rocker can't have a softer side?

Last week QMI Agency ran a story about how the legendary guitar player and songwriter with The Who mouthed "f--- off" to a dad with a seven-year-old daughter on his shoulders at the Quadrophenia performance at Copps Coliseum in Hamilton, Ont.

Eric Costello and his daughter Janey had moved toward the stage with a sign that read "Smash your guitar, Pete."

The guitarist and songwriter seemed irritated and a YouTube video shows him mouthing the epithet.

But worried about the feelings of a kid, the 67-year-old music legend showed he's actually all right.

"Apologies and condolences from my side, and very best wishes to you and your family," Townshend wrote in a personal letter to Costello Thursday, asking if they could "meet and be friends and put this behind us."

[realcity]

I like Jackson Square. Actually if it wasn't there there wouldn't be much else to downtown. It's still the heart of downtown, an enclosed pedestrian mall laid out like winding streets. It's not an oval like suburban malls, it connects a variety of venues too including the library, market (used to connect to Copps), office buildings, movie theatres, another "oval suburban mall", it's great.

I like Copps too, it's not as outdated as everyone thinks, it's just that it wasn't totally finished 100% as planned for an NHL team. If that were to happen then the remaining finishes would be constructed. It was built to function and it controls crowds very well and the viewing experience is tops.

[realcity]

Has the HECFI management and admin staff been fired yet?

[thistleclub]

City pride key to downtown success
(Hamilton Spectator, Steve Arnold, Mar 2 2013)

When Scott Warren is stuck for a new marketing idea for an event he knows he only has to pick up the phone and he can have a hundred by the end of the next day. That's the way it works when you're part of a multinational company managing theatres, arenas and stadiums around the world. Warren, who officially took over Friday as general manager of Hamilton Place and Copps Coliseum, said those kinds of relationships will be a key part of what he hopes to do with Hamilton's main hockey and theatre venues now that they are under private management.

“This business is a relationships business first and foremost,” he said. “The relationships I've built up over 22 years in the industry will help us here. The relationship we have with Live Nation as a partner in this venture will help us drive more events into this building.”

Warren is the Hamilton point man for Global Spectrum, the Philadelphia-based company chosen by the city to take over management of the theatre and arena. Management of the Hamilton Convention Centre has been turned over to the Mercanti Group, operators of Carmen's banquet centre on the east Mountain. Coupled with promoter and ticket seller Live Nation, Warren promised to draw new events into the performance and sports spaces, increasing activity in the downtown and helping to turn the facilities into money makers.

“There's a resurgence of pride in the city. It's a great time to be coming in when that is happening,” he said. A key tactic for the company, he said, will be to get out into the community, ensuring people know what's coming into the city-owned stage and arena. “Really, it's going to be about awareness of the events which helps increase sales and drive more events into the buildings,” he said. “One of the things we're passionate about is getting out into the community, that is crucial to us. We're very passionate about volunteerism in the community.”

The first group to benefit from that approach will be the Hamilton Bulldogs hockey team. The club has signed a three-year lease extension with a two-year option with Copps Coliseum. Warren promises a new relationship with the financially marginal team. “When we go out into the community and talk about upcoming concerts and events, we're taking Bulldogs stuff with us at the same time,” he said.

“We're not just the owner of the building and they're a tenant, we see ourselves working together with them as closely as possible,” he added. “When they do a retreat and talk about their plans and goals we're going to be in those meetings with them.”

Under the terms of privatization deal for the former HECFI facilities, Hamilton still owns the buildings and must be consulted before any major capital work is done. Warren said both buildings need refreshing.

“The buildings need upgrades and that's just a matter of capital,” he said. “We will present a capital budget to the city and then it's just a matter of knocking them away one at a time. There are a lot of opportunities for us to put a little bit of a facelift on it in the immediate phase but on some of the bigger projects we will have to budget capital money with the city. The building still belongs to the city so what they allow us to do we will do.”

The situation at Hamilton Place is a little better, he said, noting “”It needs improvements like new carpeting but the bones are pretty solid, we just need to put some polish on this and we'll do that over time.”

[drpgq]

Originally Posted by realcity

Has the HECFI management and admin staff been fired yet?

Didn't they just fire 28 within the past couple of weeks?