Durham Performing Arts Center (DPAC) Proves Big City Benefits Once Again
Durham Performing Arts Center - Durham, NC
If you were reading the Garfield Traub Public Private Partnerships blog recently you would have seen our last article titled, “Dallas Convention Center Hotel Development Brings Big Benefits to City.” There we explained how convention center hotel developments are boosting city revenue and bringing in new visitors and business in large numbers. Additionally, you may have read towards the end of the article about performing arts centers allowing cities to reap similar benefits. A press release from the Durham Performing Arts Center (DPAC) was released yesterday titled, “DPAC Gets Ready to Celebrate 3 Monumental Years,” reinforcing our point even more.
The DPAC press release cited that the Durham Performing Arts Center is celebrating multiple achievements in the month of November, including being named once again in the top 10 theater venues in attendance in America, the New York Times Travel section recognizing the DPAC as “an integral part of the city of Durham’s continuing success,” and the celebration of the DPAC’s 3rd Anniversary on November 30, 2011.
In a previous article titled, “Garfield Traub Development DPAC Proves Skeptics Wrong” we noted that trade publication Pollstar named DPAC #2 in the U.S. for attendance, and #4 internationally in 2011 Pollstar’s Top 100 Theater Venues for ticket sales. The DPAC has stated that, “In the U.S., DPAC is on the heels of the Coliseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas- a theater often referred to as the home of the greatest entertainers of the world, and the legendary Fox Theatre in Atlanta. Trailing DPAC is #4) Nokia Theatre L.A. Live , LA, CA #5) Beacon Theatre, NY, NY #6) Broward Ctr. Au-Rene Theater, Fort Lauderdale, FL, #7) Radio City Music Hall NY, NY, #8) Verizon Theatre at Grand Prairie, Grand Prairie, TX, #9) Orpheum Theater, Omaha, NE and #10) Dreyfoos Theater, West Palm Beach, FL.”
With a new theater development like the Durham Performing Arts Center being built in a down economy, like the Dallas Convention Center development, taxpayers and some city officials were skeptical. However, as time has proven again and again, it is these developments that, if planned well, can make the difference how a city weathers and how quickly a city recovers from a down economy.
Durham Performing Arts Center Representative Reginald James Johnson was recently asked by KCPW radio station, Utah’s first and only 24-hour commercial-free news and information radio station, if there was an economic benefit to building the DPAC. Mr. Johnson replied by saying, “The Durham Performing Arts Center opened in bad economy in 2008, and when the DPAC first opened they sold out and restaurants surrounding it were thriving despite others in most other cities plummeting in sales.” And Schuster Center Representative
Schuster Center Dayton, OH
Ken Neufeld answered that same KCPW question by saying, “Dayton, Ohio was behind the scene and needed to be put in a favorable position to recruit businesses and people. Statistically, arts amenities are one of the top three things people are looking for when moving or coming there. Over half of ticket sales for the Lion King Broadway show were made up of those who had never been to theater before, thus bringing in new customers for all businesses located around the Center. Performing arts centers are an infrastructure that smart cities have to have, and it has paid off for Dayton a lot.”
If you would like to know how you might be able to get a Performing Arts Center like the DPAC developed in your city contact Garfield Traub.
DALLAS CONVENTION CENTER HOTEL DEVELOPMENT BRINGS BIG BENEFITS TO CITY
Omni Dallas Convention Center Hotel
The new 1,000-room Dallas Convention Center Hotel made front page of the Dallas Morning News today announcing its debut this Friday. Along with that debut, the City has a lot more to be excited about with actual revenue earnings climbing well above the originally projected numbers.
This rise in revenue is not uncommon with Convention Center Hotels despite the down economy. Convention Center Hotels have proven, if planned well, to bring not only success in city revenue, but also in creating more jobs, boosting revenue for surrounding businesses, and in bringing more visitors to their cities.
The idea for the almost $500 million Dallas Convention Center Hotel stemmed from the City wanting to reap the benefits mentioned above. Luckily for Dallas, the hotel is already doing just that and it has not even opened yet.
Omni Dallas Convention Center Hotel Roof Top
According to City figures, The Dallas Omni Hotel has booked 273 meetings and conventions through 2017. And the Dallas Convention Center is already reaping the benefits from 89 of those that will use their space. Additionally, figures presented to the Dallas Morning News by Chief Financial Officer for the Dallas Convention Center & Visitors Bureau Matthew Jones, cited that in fiscal years prior to voters approving the hotel, the city booked 31 large conventions. In the fiscal years immediately following the vote, there were 45.
It is these reports that also have the City excited that they will more than likely not have to use any of their reserve funds to pay back any part of the $497 million in bonds used to build the hotel. The numbers also ease the City’s concerns that the taxpayers, who almost killed the hotel project in May of 2009 with a referendum will be angry with them in the end.
Durham Performing Arts Center - Durham, NC
“This anger is not uncommon with taxpayers ever since the onset of the current recession,” said Ray Garfield of Dallas-based Garfield Traub Development. “Taxpayers worry that their money is going to frivolous desires by the City, but it is actually projects like the Dallas Omni Hotel, Durham Performing Arts Center in Durham, North Carolina, and many others that prove that even though times might be tough, it is hospitality and entertainment developments like these that are helping to keep cities going and looking their best.”
To find out more about how a Convention Center Hotel or Performing Arts Center might help your city, contact Garfield Traub.
Utah Performing Arts Center Development Case Strengthened By City Successes
During a recent interview with KCPW, Utah’s first and only 24-hour commercial-free news and information radio station, three theater experts from Denver, Durham, N.C. and Dayton, Ohio discussed why theaters such as the proposed Utah Performing Arts Center in Salt Lake City are vital to the success of a City in a down economy and over the long term. The cost estimate for the proposed Utah Performing Arts Center is approximately $100 million, but other big theaters have made up for their initial cost in tenfold benefits to their cities.
A yearlong study commissioned by the Redevelopment Agency of Salt Lake City and conducted by Garfield Traub Swisher, the Utah-based company selected by the RDA in October 2009 to develop the theater, identified a bevy of cultural and economic benefits the proposed Utah Performing Arts Center would bring to the capital city.
Here is a sample of what each expert had to say about their Performing Arts Center experiences:
SCHUSTER CENTER REPRESENTATIVE KEN NEUFELD, President and CEO of the Victoria Theatre Association, operator of the Benjamin and Marian Schuster Center, the Victoria Theatre, and the Loft Theatre in Dayton, Ohio
KCPW: How did your community pay for your facilities?
Ken Neufeld: Public Private Partnership
- $40 Million in Philanthropy
- State, County and City Supporters
- Regional Transit Authority with Federal Money
- Bonds
KCPW: Was there an economic benefit to building your Performing Arts Center?
Ken Neufeld: “Dayton, Ohio was behind the scene and needed to be put in favorable position to recruit businesses and people. Statistically, arts amenities are one of the top three things people are looking for when moving or coming there. Over half of ticket sales for the Lion King Broadway show were made up of those who had never been to theater before, thus bringing in new customers for all businesses located around the Center. Performing arts centers are an infrastructure that smart cities have to have and it has paid off for Dayton a lot.”
KCPW: Did the new performing arts center take away from the other local arts facilities and are you just ticket shifting or actually getting more visitors?
Ken Neufeld: “There is no crossover. We know from studying our audience what other kinds of venues they go to and are engaged in. When we did “Wicked” the Symphony actually captured more buyers as new subscribers from the “Wicked” audience then we did. So, it actually went in the reverse and we developed more of an audience for them. Our market is very different from others.”
KCPW: You mentioned you have an historic theater already. Why invest in a larger theater if you already have a theater that can bring touring productions into town?
Ken Neufeld: “The idea of having a retrofitted old theater is never really an acceptable option. It is like a city that looks at their sewer system and says, “We can patch up those cast-iron pipes, they will last another 10 years.” But that is really not the smart idea in the long run. You really have to look at these buildings as part of a city’s infrastructure, and these arts centers are a part of a smart modern city’s infrastructure in order to attract businesses and people to move to the community. These amenities help people to do this.”
KCPW: Final advice as to whether the Utah Performing Arts Center should be built in this economy.
Ken Neufeld: “In times of a recession you can benefit at getting a facility at a better budget point. In 30 years when everyone is still enjoying this facility and it is doing everything it should be doing, I don’t think anyone is going to be talking about the $100 million bond issue at that point. They are going to be slapping themselves on the back saying ‘wasn’t that a great decision?’”
DURHAM PERFORMING ARTS CENTER REPRESENTATIVE REGINALD JAMES JOHNSON, Interim Director of the Durham, North Carolina Department of Community Development
KCPW: How did your community pay for your facilities?
Reginald James Johnson: Public Private Partnership
- $30 Million in certificates of participation paid by hotel occupancy taxes
- Naming Rights Partnerships
- Duke University provided $7.5 million
KCPW: Was there an economic benefit to building your Performing Arts Center?
Reginald James Johnson: “The Durham Performing Arts Center opened in bad economy in 2008, and when the center first opened they sold out and restaurants surrounding it were thriving despite others in most other cities plummeting in sales.”
KCPW: You mentioned you have an historic theater already. Why invest in a larger theater if you already have a theater that can bring touring productions into town?
Reginald James Johnson: “Because we did not have one that could actually hold a Broadway play in Durham. Stage requirements did not accommodate all the equipment a Broadway theater needs in the historical theater and we wanted to have a Broadway play come to Durham.”
KCPW: Is this the right time? The economic climate is not great, as we all know. If you had to make this choice again in your respective cities, would you do this now?
“We can’t pull back in a down economy. Everything can’t just come to a halt. We have to keep moving forward regardless. We in Durham look toward the future and we have visions of what we want the quality of life to look like. And even now, we are doing the largest revitalization project we have ever done. We need to move forward in times like these because life goes on, and our children and our children’s children need to have something to benefit from.”
DENVER CENTER FOR PERFORMING ARTS RANDY WEEKS, President of the Denver Center for the Performing Arts
KCPW: How did your community pay for your facilities?
Randy Weeks: Public Private Partnership
- Naming Rights Partnerships
- Bond Issues
- Facilities Development Admission Tax (FDA) – This tax comes from each ticket sold to service bonds, this tax has paid for the facility two times over
KCPW: Did the new performing arts center take away from the other local arts facilities and are you just ticket shifting or actually getting more visitors?
Randy Weeks: “The vibrancy of the local theater scene is really quite incredible and flourishing. We are feeding the cultural economy. The more exposure people have to an art form the more they want it.”
KCPW: Is this the right time? The economic climate is not great, as we all know. If you had to make this choice again in your respective cities, would you do this now?
Randy Weeks: “The main advice I would give is you should have done it 10 years ago, and putting it off more is just going to cost more. With the older structures and little amenities people just don’t want to go downtown anymore.”
In order for this state-of-the-art theater to be completed, the Utah Performing Arts Center needs to have the support of sponsors like you who would like to add their name as a “UPAC Playbill Partner” and receive regular project reports, upcoming UPAC Newsletters and exclusive, partners-only opportunities!
To see how other existing Performing Arts Centers have benefited their cities, visit the Utah Performing Arts Center website.
Utah Performing Arts Center Community Forum
Garfield Traub Swisher, the Utah Performing Arts Center development consultant to the Redevelopment Agency of Salt Lake City, would like to announce that a panel of representatives from around the country will talk about the successes and challenges of building performing arts centers in their cities. Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker will invite and encourage audience members to join the dialogue.
When:Wednesday, September 28, 7 p.m. Salt Lake City Main Public Library Auditorium 210 East 400 South, Salt Lake City
Panelists:
President and CEO of Victoria Theatre Association, Operator of the Schuster Center, the Victoria Theatre, and the Loft Theatre in Dayton, Ohio
KEN NEUFELD, President and CEO of Victoria Theatre Association, Operator of the Schuster Center, the Victoria Theatre, and the Loft Theatre in Dayton, Ohio
Mr. Neufeld is a 28-year veteran in executive management of performing arts centers, professional theatre companies and civic museums in the United States and Canada. He has developed a national reputation for successfully diversifying audiences and expanding programming to include under-served and nontraditional audiences. A creative thinker in dealing with economic downturns and urban revitalization, Mr. Neufeld has a reputation for being a collaborative arts and community partner with a track record in studying ways to share services for increased efficiency.
Interim Director of the Durham, North Carolina Department of Community Development
REGINALD JAMES JOHNSON, Interim Director of the Durham, North Carolina Department of Community Development
In addition to his Community Development responsibilities, Mr. Johnson is the liaison to Durham’s two city-owned theatres – the 1,000-seat Carolina Theatre built in 1926 and the 2,800-seat Durham Performing Arts Center (DPAC), the largest theatre in North and South Carolina. From November 2003 through August 2011, Mr. Johnson was the senior assistant to the Durham city manager, advising Durham’s city manager on public policy and management issues and serving as the city manager’s liaison with the City Council and the Durham community.
President of the Denver Center for the Performing Arts
RANDY WEEKS, President of the Denver Center for the Performing Arts
Mr. Weeks’ past titles include Executive Director of Denver Center Attractions and Theater Operations Manager for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. His career has been highlighted by securing Denver for the openings of the national tours of A Chorus Line, Sunset Boulevard, Carol Channing in Hello Dolly! and Disney’s The Lion King, as well as the pre-Broadway run of Disney’s The Little Mermaid. In addition to presenting up to 22 Broadway touring productions a year, Mr. Weeks added cabaret productions in the Garner Galleria Theatre to Denver Center Attractions’ offerings in 1992. He is a member of the Independent Presenter Network and serves as a Governor for the Broadway Theatre League.
Please visit the new Utah Performing Arts Center website to find out more about the goals and economic impact the development will have on Salt Lake City, Utah and how you too can get involved.
Fundamentals of Economic Development Finance: Second Edition
Fundamentals of Economic Development Finance
We highly recommend the recently-published Fundamentals of Economic Development Finance: Second Edition, authored by Susan Giles Bischak. Ms. Giles Bischak is President and Founding Principal of Giles & Company Strategic Business Consultants and instructor for Economic Development Finance in the Distance Learning Program at the University of California, Los Angeles, and has served as an Adjunct Professor at Stanford University Graduate School of Business and the University of Southern California, School of Policy and Development.
This excellent book provides a “hands on” approach for public/private partnerships and lays out tools for policymakers, community leaders, developers, and lenders to prepare and evaluate strategic business plans to attract private investment dollars. Ms. Giles Bischak walks the reader through each step of the financial plan starting with the project proposal, setting goals and objectives, organization development, venture selection, financial analysis, risk assessment for all parties involved, and project implementation. This book includes case studies, real-world examples and exercises, a glossary of terms, and steps to prepare a business plan. The book is used as an academic tool and for seminars with policy makers.
Ray Garfield of Garfield Traub was privileged to be a contributor in Ms. Giles Bischak’s book. Garfield Traub’s early and ongoing successes nationally in overcoming economic, legal and political hurdles to essential public developments through innovative financing and delivery methods are discussed in Chapter 5, “Fundamentals of Economic Development Finance.” Garfield Traub’s white paper entitled “Municipal Lease-Purchase Financing and Certificates of Participation,” is cited as a resource for key elements of this chapter.
Purchase Fundamentals of Economic Development Finance here.
Garfield Traub Development DPAC Proves Skeptics Wrong
Durham Performing Arts Center - Durham, NC
The Durham Performing Arts Center (DPAC), developed by Garfield Traub, is getting a lot of media attention lately with its key role in the transformation of downtown Durham into a thriving destination with an array of restaurants, entertainment and shopping. Although some openly doubted the project in the past, many of those same people are now retracting their criticism and praising the development instead.
“We are proud of what DPAC has accomplished for the redevelopment of Durham,” said Garfield Traub Principal Greg Garfield. “Durham’s downtown dining and shopping experience has been greatly enhanced by the DPAC, and we at Garfield Traub are glad that we had the opportunity to lead the development.”
In a July article entitled “DPAC: Proof is in the profit,” one local correspondent admitted he wrongly thought in 2007 that the Durham City Council was “digging itself into yet another financial hole” with the project. Now that same reporter has gone on to say, “bully for all the people who gave life to DPAC. You have a big, brassy hit on your hands. It couldn’t have happened to a more deserving burg.”
Additionally, a recent article in The New York Times Travel section attributed a big part of Durham’s success to the development of the Durham Performing Arts Center. And if that were not enough, trade publication Pollstar announced DPAC as ranking second nationally in theater attendance for the first quarter. This is a huge honor for Durham, which is competing against other widely-known theater markets like Los Angeles and New York City.
The Durham Performing Arts Center operator confirms that the design of the DPAC ensures there isn’t a bad seat in the house. It is this design that keeps popular performances such as Broadway favorites Wicked, Billy Elliot and RENT, comedians and actors Bill Cosby and Al Pacino, and musical acts such as Leonard Cohen and B.B. King coming and attendance so high. And with a highly-attended theater comes many businesses that have flocked to the area to reap the benefits from the many concert-goers the theater brings.
“Garfield Traub was instrumental in the planning for the DPAC,” said Alan DeLisle, Assistant City Manager for Economic and Workforce Development (2002 – 2009). “The City of Durham has benefited greatly from their leadership and expertise in this process.”
Read more about the development details of the Durham Performing Arts Center. To learn how you can get your public infrastructure financed and developed contact Garfield Traub.
Study: Downtown Salt Lake City theater would attract 123K new visitors to Utah
A cutaway view, looking north, of a plan for a Broadway-style theater along Main Street in downtown Salt Lake City.
By Jared Page, Deseret News
SALT LAKE CITY — A theater capable of hosting first-run touring Broadway shows would attract more than 123,000 new visitors to Salt Lake City each year and serve as an economic catalyst on Main Street, according to a study released Tuesday.
The yearlong study commissioned by the Redevelopment Agency of Salt Lake City identifies a bevy of cultural and economic benefits the proposed Utah Performing Arts Center would bring to the capital city.
The study was conducted by Garfield Traub Swisher, the Utah-based company selected by the RDA in October 2009 to develop the theater.
The developers say the Utah Performing Arts Center would meet the pent-up demand for first-run touring Broadway productions in Utah. Currently, space and scheduling limitations prevent Salt Lake City from attracting such shows until their seventh, eighth or ninth runs.
“The Lion King,” for example, came to Utah 13 years after it opened on Broadway, according to the study. The show was a huge hit, running for seven weeks and grossing $8 million in sales. It also generated more than $500,000 in sales-tax revenue, $500,000 in stagehand job wages, $200,000 in local musician job wages and another $500,000 in facility rental income.
Garfield Traub Swisher estimates a $200 million to $500 million one-time economic boost during construction of the 148,000-square foot performing arts center. The developers also estimate $9.4 million a year in ongoing economic output from the theater.
In October 2008, Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker announced plans to build the Utah Performing Arts Center at approximately 135 S. Main. The project, which will feature a 2,500-seat theater, is estimated to cost between $88 million and $98 million.
The complete report can be downloaded at www.slcrda.com.
Public Private Partnerships Solving Government Budget Deficits
As Government budget deficits continue to climb for state, local and federal Governments, you will hear much more about the utilization of Public Private Partnerships, also known as, “P3s” or “PPP” to solve this problem. P3 projects are quickly rising in popularity due to the success of obtaining funds to renew Government infrastructure, improve transportation, and construct new projects that they could not afford before.
Public Private Partnership projects involve a contract between a public sector authority and a private party, in which the private party provides a public service or project and assumes substantial financial, technical and operational risk in the project. In some types of PPPs, the cost of using the provided services is given exclusively by the users of the service and not by the more traditional method of using the taxpayer.
But why would a private company assume such a huge risk?
Like any investment with large risk, there is a great opportunity for an invested private business to make a lot of money. With Public Private Partnerships, revenues can be in the form of either a fee for service, paid by government, or fees collected from users, as in the case of highway tolls, automatically ticketed red lights, or hotels attached to convention centers.
One example of a development company successfully using Public Private Partnerships structured to benefit various parties, is Garfield Traub Development. Garfield Traub Development has developed over 40 hotels using primarily P3 funding. One example specifically is the Overton Hotel and Convention Center located in Lubbock, TX. This 303-room hotel with a 47,000 gross square-foot conference center is located across the street from Texas Tech University and Jones AT&T Stadium in Overton Park, the largest private redevelopment project in U.S. history, to date.
The hotel was financed with private debt and equity. The conference center was financed with City bonds to be repaid by site-specific occupancy taxes and property taxes. The capital plan also included naming rights, room licenses and nonprofit foundation grants.
The City now leases the conference center on a long-term basis to the hotel owner who operates the entire property. In addition, the hotel also partnered with Texas Tech University’s Restaurant, Hotel, and Institutional Management (RHIM) program to provide hands-on laboratory experiences in a variety of areas that will truly benefit the RHIM students, giving them the opportunity to become successful professionals in the hospitality industry.
With PP3s solving Government budget deficits and successfully creating development projects like these, it is no wonder that they are on the rise. It really is a win-win situation for everyone involved and creates a solution to a big problem.
If you want more information on how Public Private Partnerships might help you, visit http://www.garfieldtraub.com or e-mail Garfield Traub.
