Author: James Zoltak

Venues Rise Up to Meet the COVID-19 Challenge

Venues Rise Up to Meet the COVID-19 Challenge

Posted by | Mar 25, 2020 | , ,

National Guard members at the Javits Center in New York City, where they are building field hospitals inside the convention center. (Getty Images) Convention centers become field hospitals, homeless shelters Hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, the venues industry is nonetheless serving communities in their time of need, with some being used to house field hospitals and others accommodating homeless populations. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the National Guard will construct four 250-bed field hospitals at the Javits Center in New York City, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced. The facility will eventually be able to handle 2,000 patients amid an expected surge of those needing treatment for COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus. Three other pop-up hospitals are being constructed in the state, including one at the Westchester Convention Center. In New Jersey, Gov. Phil Murphy announced that pop-up hospitals, each with 250 beds, will be built at… Continue Reading Venues Rise Up to Meet the COVID-19 Challenge

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Mourn, survive, then rebuild, one CEO says

Mourn, survive, then rebuild, one CEO says

Posted by | Mar 25, 2020 | , ,

LnkBox Group provides last-mile transportation at events like Coachella, shown in 2019. (Getty Images) Joseph Bradley of LnkBox Group on the road ahead, life after COVID-19 Joseph Bradley, founder and CEO of LnkBox Group, which provides last-mile transportation solutions and secures and activates sponsorships in and around live events like the Coachella and Okeechobee music festivals (AEG and Live Nation are its two largest clients), told VenuesNow that the company saw about 80% of its business “vaporized in about 96 hours” in early March. “I don’t think that anybody really had any idea as to just what kind of black swan we were dealing with here,” he said in describing the COVID-19 outbreak. From what he’s heard, it’s a similar story across the live event production world. “That kind of four- (to) five-day period was where everybody just kind of took it on the chin,” he said. “I think the… Continue Reading Mourn, survive, then rebuild, one CEO says

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Ballmer Has Deal to Buy Forum for $400M in Cash

Ballmer Has Deal to Buy Forum for $400M in Cash

Posted by | Mar 24, 2020 | , ,

The Forum has been strictly a music venue since 2014 after a $100M renovation by The Madison Square Garden Co. (Courtesy the Forum) Acquisition would clear way for Clippers’ arena The NBA’s Los Angeles Clippers have reached an agreement to buy the Forum from The Madison Square Garden Co. for $400 million, paving the way for team owner Steve Ballmer to move forward with plans to develop a new arena near the venerable Inglewood venue, it was announced Tuesday. The purchase involves a newly formed entity, CAPSS LLC, and was driven by Ballmer, the Clippers chairman, and Clippers Vice Chairman Dennis Wong, the team announced. “By reaching an agreement with MSG, CAPSS LLC will acquire the Inglewood venue, simultaneously resolving litigation surrounding plans for the new NBA arena,” according to a statement from the Clippers. “As part of the agreement, all of MSG’s current Forum employees will be extended employment… Continue Reading Ballmer Has Deal to Buy Forum for $400M in Cash

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Among cancellations, examples of solidarity emerge

Posted by | Mar 23, 2020 | , ,

‘We are all in this together,’ sports and entertainment attorney says The World Health Organization’s designation of the COVID-19 crisis as a pandemic and various government jurisdictions banning gatherings of ever-shrinking sizes or placing large areas on virtual lockdown bring to bear the legal concept of force majeure, which can essentially void contract obligations between venues and event organizers, according to Scottsdale, Ariz.-based sports and entertainment law attorney Steven Adelman. Prior to those declarations, the application of the force majeure principle was murky because, as Adelman explained, a pandemic qualifies, but fear of a pandemic does not. In the case of the latter, parties to a contract could have tried to hold one another’s feet to the fire. Now, either side can walk away from contracts as if they never met in the first place, he said.  Event cancellation or communicable or infectious disease insurance isn’t likely to bring any… Continue Reading Among cancellations, examples of solidarity emerge

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Venue Managers Share Virus Preparations

Venue Managers Share Virus Preparations

Posted by | Mar 11, 2020 | , , ,

SIGN OF THE TIMES: A Miami Heat fan looks over a coronavirus poster outside the restroom before an NBA game at AmericanAirlines Arena on Wednesday. The league announced last night that it was suspending its season because of the COVID-19 threat. (Getty Images) All say they’re fielding calls asking about cancellations, postponements As the novel coronavirus pandemic continues its spread across the U.S., venue managers who gathered in Los Angeles this week for a regional industry association meeting said calls are pouring in from organizers and promoters seeking to cancel or postpone events or inquire about both. During a town hall-style discussion at the International Association of Venue Managers Region 7 Conference at the Los Angeles Convention Center, some attendees said they were miffed that government officials in some jurisdictions have moved to prohibit large gatherings with little or no consultation with facilities severely affected by such decisions. Several who… Continue Reading Venue Managers Share Virus Preparations

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