Venue Detail
Tampa Bay Storm
Revenues From Sports Venues Pro Facilities Report
February, 2011
Tampa Bay Storm
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401 Channelside Dr Tampa, FL 33602-5400 Phone: 813-276-7300 Fax: 813-276-7301 URL: www.tampabaystorm.com
Owner
Jeffrey N. Vinik
League
Arena Football One American Conference, South
Venue
St. Pete Times Forum, 401 Channelside Dr, Tampa, FL 33602-5400 Owner: Tampa Sports Authority Managed by: Team Built: 1996 Capacity: 23,000 Permanent concession stands: 22 Concessionaire: Sportservice Suite caterer: Sportservice Soft drink: Coca Cola Beer: Multiple
Naming rights
Sold to: St. Petersburg Times Price: $33, 000,000 Term: 12 years Expires: 2014
Ticket prices
Season tickets range from $50 to $800 Single tickets range from $16.00 to $50.00
Attendance
2007 average attendance: 15,788 2008 average attendance: 16,793
Luxury Suites
Quantity: 80 Term: 3 to 10 years Price: $65,000 to $225,000 Seats: 18 to 18 Includes: Tickets, parking passes, club membership. Rental of the party suite is $75 to $125 per person depending upon the food package.
Club seats
Quantity: 3,000 Term: 1 to 1 years Price: $3,699 to $12,999 Includes: Tickets, parking, wait staff.
Financing
The $153 million venue received $66.8 million from tax-exempt revenue bonds from the stadium authority and another $28.8 million in revenue bonds from the state. The balance came from private sources. Pct. public: 66
Formerly known as The Ice Palace, the arena is the home of the NHL Lightning. The Lightning moved from the Thunderdome to the $150 million venue at the start of the 1996-97 NHL season. The name was changed in 2002 in a naming rights deal.
A study for the Hillsborough County Commission says the arena and the Tampa Bay Lightning are losing money. The venue lost $3 million in 2001 and the team lost $18 million, according to the report by Turnkey Sports. The losses give the team the option of relocating, according to its lease.
Team officials said they don't have immediate plans to leave, but said they need to draw more fans to survive. That could be hurt by a county plan under consideration that would add a $3 surcharge to arena events. The county already has a 75-cent surcharge. The money would be used to pay the $1.5 million annual debt service. The team is opposed to the plan and the report says a surcharge could make the building unpopular with show and concert promoters. The venue hosted about 150 events in 2001.
A five-year agreement with local Chrysler and Plymouth dealers will provide funding for the Lightning to renovate the arena's club and suite levels. Terms of the deal were not announced, but they are estimated at $10 million and include naming rights for the arena's club and suite levels, restaurant and VIP entrances. Signage is included along with space inside the arena to display automobiles. The renovation work will cost up to $5 million.
For the 2000-01 season the venue opened the new XO Club with 431 seats at a cost of $4,000 each. The club was expected to generate $2 million its first season. The club was expanded in 2001, adding up to 600 seats. The $1.3 million project pushed seat prices to $5,000 per season.
To make room for the expansion, the team removed five rows of club seats.
The Lightning and the venue were purchased by Palace Sports and Entertainment in 1999. When Palace Sports & Entertainment took over the building, it talked with customers, former customers and non-customers to learn what they wanted. Using that blueprint, it invested $12.5 million in the facilities and put in the amenities that fans said they wanted. Included were three new bars, large screen television monitors and stage area to the venue. There is also an exclusive cigar bar for 500 fans. (Facilities, Financial, Football, Professional Sports)