Saturday, June 09, 2001
Riverfront Classic future in doubt
Move to Paul Brown Stadium hikes costs
By Dan Klepal
The Cincinnati Enquirer
The future of the Riverfront Classic, a college football game pitting historically black universities, may be threatened because it is moving into a new stadium this year.
With more than $600,000 in debt already on the books from its first two years, the Classic is in desperate need of a profit. That would be impossible under the terms of a contract Hamilton County officials want him to sign, Mr. Pace said.
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IF YOU GO
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• What: Riverfront Classic football game pitting Grambling and Florida A&M.
• When: Sept. 15.
• Where: Paul Brown Stadium.
• Tickets: $14-$50, available at Ticketmaster, 562-4949.
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John Pace, Classic president and chief executive officer, said taking the game this fall to Paul Brown Stadium from Cinergy Field will cost his nonprofit organization an additional $200,000.
The Classic, like any upstart event, needs time to gain name recognition and become financially profitable, Mr. Pace said.
Those concerns have led to a situation in which the Classic has been selling tickets since March for its Sept. 15 game between Grambling and Florida A&M despite not having a signed contract to use the stadium.
“We strongly believed we'd break even and have some net revenue this year” under the terms of the prior contract, Mr. Pace said. “This contract proposal threatens the viability of holding future events.”
County officials say playing the game at Paul Brown Stadium won't cost the Riverfront Classic any more money. The Classic has been late with payments to the county in each of its first two years, and that has caused the county to ask for a $40,000 security deposit — up from $5,000 its first year.
“Unfortunately, the past two years have created an apparent financial hardship for you that the county and the Bengals do not want to shoulder,” Joe Feldkamp, assistant stadium operations director, wrote to Mr. Pace in May. “(We) continue to support the Riverfront Classic football game, but feel the Classic must be capable of financing the event within the terms of the contract.”
Mr. Pace said playing the game at Paul Brown Stadium will cost his organization in several ways:
• Advertising revenue: This is by far the greatest loss — an estimated $150,000. The Classic was allowed unlimited banner and Jumbotron screen advertisements (for sponsors such as Procter & Gamble and UPS), along with 30 minutes of ads on the main scoreboard at Cinergy. This year, the contract calls for no banner or Jumbotron ads and 160 seconds of scoreboard advertising.
“An event of this nature must be able to advertise its sponsors,” Mr. Pace said. “It's a must because most of the dollars we get come out of marketing budgets.”
• Luxury suites: The Classic was given use of 10 suites at Cinergy, which were used to entertain dignitaries and generate about $35,000 in revenue. There will be no use of suites this year.
• Merchandising: The Classic received all of this revenue last year. It will have to share those profits with the Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium.
Suzanne Burke, the county's budget director, said those terms can't be negotiated because the stadium lease with the Bengals dictates them.
Hamilton County Commissioner John Dowlin wants to see a signed contract soon.
“They want it for free, and we're not going to do that,” Mr. Dowlin said. “They've owed us money every year, and now they want us to just give them the stadium.”
The Classic was late in paying a $9,500 “stadium use” charge from last year. That cash was due 30 days after the game, but was paid in May.
“There is a history here where they do not pay in accordance with the contract,” Ms. Burke said.
Commissioner Todd Portune said he would like to help make the contract terms more manageable for the Classic.
“This is an area where I believe the commission ought to use wide discretion to use this facility for a wider public purpose, and not have it cost-prohibitive,” Mr. Portune said.
A independent study by Ohio State University of the three days of football and cultural events — which include an education summit and a poetry jam — found it brought in $12 million to the community last year.
Mr. Pace said that should make the county want to cut some slack for the event.
“What is the responsibility of a county-owned facility to the community supporting it?” Mr. Pace asked. “If that role is different now than it was at Cinergy, why?”
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