PAGE TURNER: Senior Vice President of Acrisure Arena and Coachella Valley Firebirds John Page has led the Palms Springs area venue through its early operational phases. (Courtesy venue)
Venue generated $24.4 million in state and local taxes
An economic study by Visit Greater Palm Springs estimated the 2023 economic impact of Acrisure Arena at more than $168 million.
The report issued this week also said the arena, opened in late ’22, supported nearly 2,000 jobs.
Compared to the previous Tourism Economics study, which looked at 2021, Acrisure Arena exceeded its 2023 projections in annual direct spending, job creation, labor income, event attendance, the number of out-of-area event attendees, total business sales and contributions to state and local taxes, which were put at $24.4 million last year.
COACHELLA VALLEY DIAMOND: Acrisure Arena added a new sports and live entertainment dimension to Greater Palm Springs. (Courtesy venue)
“To actually see the results play out with factual information behind them is really a true testament to everything the team here has accomplished,” said John Page, senior vice president of Acrisure Arena and the Coachella Valley Firebirds. “I knew it was something special when I decided to join and come here in January of 2023. So being a part of it and seeing our ability to continue to grow and develop and do more, I think there’s so much upside as well.”
The report set direct 2023 spending at $120.6 million, exceeding the initial estimate of $108.2 million from a 2021 study.
“This is just an unbelievable leisure destination, which everybody knows, but it’s incumbent on us to try to do more and get more out of it,” Page stressed. “How can we do more for the residents and how can we drive and create more economic impact utilizing the Greater Palm Springs with some other great assets that exist in the Coachella Valley?”
According to the report, in 2023, Acrisure Arena saw 850,400 attendees come through its doors for 117 events, an average of 7,268 attendees per event.
“It’s been a really positive atmosphere,” Page said. “With any new market, it does take a little time to get the agents, the managers and even the artists themselves warmed up to a new place and being close to a lot of major markets as well. I think there was some initial apprehension, maybe, but we got through that real quick. The kickoff that we had in early 2023, obviously we had the Eagles and Harry Styles, all these good shows kicked it off, but all the first-rate touring being a 10,000-seat building, we really punch above our weight in terms of overall design, which pushes price, pushes growth and gets us competitive. It’s a market that continues to grow. It’s very seasonal, but we’re able to market and take advantage of everything we need to get butts in seats.”
On the offerings the arena has had, like Luis Miguel and Peso Pluma, for the area’s substantial Hispanic population, Page said, “It’s really taking advantage of the present and history.”
“From older audiences of traditional artists like Luis Miguel that have such a following and then you have Carin León and Peso Pluma, it’s really taking advantage of the present and history,” he said. “With such a huge influential market of Latin and Hispanic individuals, it makes perfect sense for us to try to do as much as we can to bring them into our venue. That also transcends to our Coachella Valley firebirds, monster truck events and Lakers (preseason games).”
On the Madonna show on March 13, which grossed $2,376,991, Page said it came off more easily than expected.
“In talking to some of my peers in the industry, every building had a hard time making sure that show would fit and get in and out appropriately,” he said. “Just having the ability and overall design to be able to host Madonna just leads to everybody understanding there’s no show too big or too small that we can’t do.”
