Author: Don Muret

Will Beer Take a Bow at Stapleton’s Home State Show?

Will Beer Take a Bow at Stapleton’s Home State Show?

Posted by | Jan 15, 2020 | , ,

The April 25 concert will be the first for Kroger Field at the University of Kentucky in Lexington. (Don Muret / Staff) Promoter Live Nation will make the call for country singer’s Lexington concert Chris Stapleton wrote a song called “Drink a Beer” that became a No. 1 hit for fellow country artist Luke Bryan in 2014. It’s just one example of beer and country music being joined at the hip. In Kentucky, the country’s bourbon capital, add some hard liquor to the theme. “Whiskey and You,” another tune penned by Lexington, Ky., native Stapleton, is part of “Traveller,” his debut album released one year later. But for Stapleton, now a stadium headliner, there’s a question over whether booze will be sold in public spaces for his April 25 show in Lexington, the first concert at Kroger Field on the University of Kentucky campus.  The school prohibits the sale of beer,… Continue Reading Will Beer Take a Bow at Stapleton’s Home State Show?

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Veteran Sports Exec Made Greenville, S.C., Arena a Reality

Veteran Sports Exec Made Greenville, S.C., Arena a Reality

Posted by | Jan 8, 2020 | , ,

The venue, now known as Bon Secours Wellness Arena, is coming off an especially successful 12 months. (Getty Images) Carl Scheer, who died last month, developed Bi-Lo Center as home for minor league hockey team Carl Scheer was recognized as an innovator in sports and entertainment throughout his 50-year career as an executive with multiple NBA teams and as an owner of minor league hockey clubs.  His contributions to the industry extend to arena development as well. Scheer, who died Dec. 13 at age 82, filled the role of developer for building Bi-Lo Center in Greenville, S.C., now Bon Secours Wellness Arena. The arena, constructed for $63 million, opened in 1998 as the home of the East Coast Hockey League’s Greenville Grrrowl. More than 20 years later, the league’s Greenville Swamp Rabbits play at the facility. Looking back, minor league hockey has struggled to make ends meet in Greenville, but… Continue Reading Veteran Sports Exec Made Greenville, S.C., Arena a Reality

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Ticketing Star Awards: Ebony Hattix

Ticketing Star Awards: Ebony Hattix

Posted by | Jan 5, 2020 | ,

Ebony Hattix, box office manager, Memphis Grizzlies / FedEx Forum, Memphis, Tenn. (Photo courtesy Memphis Grizzlies / FedEx Forum) Out front on change  Ebony Hattix has been in the thick of a critical transition in ticketing technology at FedEx Forum. The 15-year-old arena, home to the NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies, went fully mobile last season for Grizzlies season-ticket holders after becoming only the second NBA team to make the conversion from hard tickets to digital tickets in 2014.  Like any new technology, there’s a learning curve for both the operator and the customer. For Hattix, the arena’s box office manager for the past two years, it means coming out from behind the ticket windows to help fans navigate the process of scanning their mobile tickets.  Hattix embraced the opportunity, according to her direct boss, Garth Webster, the Grizzlies’ longtime vice president of ticketing. “In that first year, we had a few outages and… Continue Reading Ticketing Star Awards: Ebony Hattix

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Stern’s Influence Extended to NBA Arena Development

Stern’s Influence Extended to NBA Arena Development

Posted by | Jan 2, 2020 | , , ,

David Stern speaks to the media before Game 1 of the 2013 NBA Finals at AmericanAirlines Arena in Miami. (Getty Images) Under former commissioner’s watch, league experienced a building boom David Stern’s strong influence as NBA commissioner helped create an unprecedented era in arena development across North America that extended globally as the league pushed its boundaries to Europe and China, according to sports executives involved in those pursuits. Stern died Jan. 1 at the age of 77. Over Stern’s 30 years at the helm of the NBA, stretching from 1984 to 2014, virtually every team in the league built a new facility, and some built multiple arenas after design flaws, among other factors, were exposed in their original venues. “When the four expansion teams came into the NBA — Orlando, Miami, Charlotte and Minnesota — all four built new arenas,” said Tim Leiweke, who got his start in the… Continue Reading Stern’s Influence Extended to NBA Arena Development

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Populous Gets Soccer Work in Charlotte

Populous Gets Soccer Work in Charlotte

Posted by | Dec 20, 2019 | , ,

Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C., will be home to an MLS team in 2021. (Getty Images) Team president Tom Glick describes event-level club, supporters bar planned for stadium Populous is designing the retrofit of Bank of America Stadium for MLS Charlotte, a project to include a new event-level premium club and a large bar for supporters groups just inside the gate on the facility’s east side. Tom Glick, president of the yet-to-be-named soccer team as well as the NFL’s Carolina Panthers, confirmed the architect and provided greater details on upgrades to the 23-year-old venue. The stadium is home to the Panthers, and Panthers owner David Tepper owns the MLS expansion team, which will start play in the 2021 season. Tepper Sports and Entertainment is the holding company formed for business tied to both teams. “The first thing to understand about Bank of America Stadium is it’s already an… Continue Reading Populous Gets Soccer Work in Charlotte

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