Venue Detail
New Jersey Devils
Revenues From Sports Venues Pro Facilities Report
February, 2011
New Jersey Devils
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50 Route 120 E. Rutherford, NJ 07070-2153 Phone: 201-935-6050 Fax: 201-935-2127 URL: www.newjerseydevils.com
Owner: Jeff Vanderbeek
League
National Hockey League Eastern, Atlantic Division
Venue
Prudential Center, 165 Mulberry St, Newark, NJ 07102 Owner: City of Newark Managed by: AEG Facilities Built: 2007 Capacity: 17,500 Concessionaire: Centerplate Suite caterer: Centerplate Beer: Anheuser-Busch InBev
Building sponsors
Parking: Yes Entries: Yes
Naming rights
Sold to: Prudential Financial Price: $105, 000,000 Term: 20 years Expires: 2027
Ticket prices
Season tickets range from $968 to $7,480 Single tickets range from $10.00 to $250.00
Attendance
2007 average attendance: 14,176 2008 average attendance: 15,564 2009 average attendance: 17,745
Luxury Suites
Quantity: 76 Price: $225,000 to $275,000 Seats: 12 to 18
Club seats
Quantity: 2,330 Price: $7,260 to $7,260
Financing
The arena cost $300 million. Newark will fund two-thirds of the arena cost with money earned from a new airport lease with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. The balance of the funding is expected to come from the team. The Devils are expected to get all arena revenue in the city-owned building. The team will also pay rent and cover any operating losses. City earnings from parking and taxes generated will be credited against the rent.
The $1 billion downtown Newark arena includes 4 million square feet of office space and 500,000 square feet of retail space.
In addition to the standard premium seat offerings, the venue has two lounges – one called Fire and the other Ice. Both have appropriate decor and will carry corporate sponsorship. The spaces are intended to be a destination for fans both before and after events.
The suites do not include refrigerators. The Devils say their research finds that guests are hesitant to simply reach in for a beverage, feeling they are intruding in their host’s private space. Instead, beverages will be provided in iced buckets, a move that has been proven to increase sales in other venues.
Prudential Financial has purchased naming rights to the new arena in a 20-year deal valued at $105 million. The facility was built just a few blocks from Prudential's headquarters.
Prudential will pay the Devils $4.5 million a year for the first five years of the agreement, and payments will increase 2.5 percent annually for the rest of the term, according to Jeff Vanderbeek, principal owner of the Devils.
The Nets are playing temporarily in Newark while a new arena is under construction for them in Brooklyn. The team formerly played in the Meadowlands at the Izod Center.
The Atlantic Yards project has more than 6,000 apartments, high-rise towers and a hotel on 22 acres near Downtown Brooklyn.
The Ratner plan calls the arena to be part of a $2.5 billion development. Ratner said he would fund the $500 million arena by borrowing from the city against future revenue generated by ticket sales.
What Ratner didn’t count on was a major economic crisis that would stall the project and delay the arena. By the end of 2009, Ratner had met his deadlines and finalized funding for the venue. While work has begun, there are still legal challenges ahead for the venue, but none are expected to stop its construction.
The 675,000-square-foot facility, scheduled to open on 2012, will hold 18,000 seats for basketball and 19,000 for concerts, said Barclays Center General Manager Alex Diaz.
The arena’s 104 luxury suites will include 63 on the lower suite level, just above the lower-level seats. (Facilities, Financial, Ice Hockey, NHL, Professional Sports)