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2026-09-01 - Special Committee on Baseball and Civic Center

Summary

Built from the official minutes of this meeting (12 pages); no video or agenda is on file.

  • Met 5:00 to 5:44 PM. Present: O'Neil (chair), Barry, Goonan, Vincent, Dexter; also Bonilla, Trisciani, Stefansson (Regional Vice President, Legends Global) and Sweeney (SNHU Arena General Manager, in the job since April 2026).
  • Single item: discussion with the arena management team on upcoming shows, staffing and related topics. No vote other than adjourning (motion Barry, second Vincent).
  • Operator figures: 24 ticketed events this fiscal year against 19, 20 and 29 in the prior three years (three year average 23); 11 concerts against 10, 9 and 13; 18 holds on the calendar (11 concerts, 7 Live Nation) against 14 a year earlier.
  • Chair O'Neil: "We need shows"; concerns about senior staff losses, the status of the ice plant, and revenue sharing for fiscal year 2025 that has not yet been seen.
  • Aldermen pressed for more events (including Latin and international acts), asked about surplus revenue and the pipeline inherited by the new management, and voiced interest in bringing professional hockey back.

SNHU Arena Event Bookings

Operator presentation (submitted to the committee in advance)

  • Legends Global, which merged with ASM almost two years ago, manages over 60 buildings in North America, most publicly owned; over 30 hold 10,000 seats or fewer, which the company calls its "bread and butter."
  • Fiscal year runs November to October. Ticketed events: 19 (FY23), 20 (FY24), 29 (FY25) and 24 this year, counting the Jonas Brothers show on September 26 (confirmed mid-August, announced August 17, on sale August 21). Concerts: 10, 9, 13 and 11 this year.
  • Market position: North American touring events fell from 4,200 in 2024 to 3,000 in 2025 and 1,100 in 2026. Among comparable Northeast arenas (TD Garden excluded as twice the size) SNHU Arena holds about 20 percent of the market, behind MVP Arena (Albany) at 23 percent.
  • On sale: Jonas Brothers, PBR, Disney on Ice and Rock Orchestra (March). Two shows to be announced and on sale in September and two in October; the tours control announcement timing and graphics.
  • Holds: 18 total, 11 concerts, 7 Live Nation (two a year ago); 2 Outback (none a year ago). Three more sets of holds were added after the materials were submitted.
  • Enterprise deals: incentive deals with Live Nation, AEG, Outback and Live Co; a renegotiated Ticketmaster and Access agreement on facility fees that, applied to 2022 through 2024, would have brought the facility an additional $1.5 million. Centralized booking team plus regional promoters.
  • Guest survey: net promoter score of 40 (above the company portfolio average) and 88 percent positive guest satisfaction.

Staffing and booking

  • O'Neil thanked both guests and said decisions were made above them. He noted the loss of longtime general manager Tim Becker (about 35 years in the business, 25 at the arena) and departures of the security director, marketing director, HR director and a finance officer. About five months passed between Becker leaving and Sweeney arriving, with an acting general manager in between.
  • Vincent asked about her top priority and the maintenance outlook; Sweeney said booking is a top priority alongside day to day operations, relationships with Becker's contacts have transitioned to her, and Live Nation has a new local contact. She had booked in New England before.
  • Stefansson said Legends is more revenue focused than ASM, which emphasized operations; summer content often goes to promoter-owned outdoor venues, and 2027 is shaping up better than 2026 because tours book far in advance.
  • Bonilla was concerned about no shows in November and the lack of Latin acts (bachata, salsa) given a large Latino festival coming to Manchester; recalled the economic effect of Phish's three-night run. Goonan asked whether promoters or seat count limit bookings. Trisciani asked about the pipeline left to the new management: Sweeney said Journey and Shinedown were confirmed, a PBR hold was converted, and the Jonas Brothers and Rock Orchestra were not inherited. He concluded the City should look to 2027 for a fuller calendar.
  • O'Neil said central booking must help small markets, holds must turn into announced shows because holds do not fill hotels and restaurants, and the City's profit and loss agreement with Legends (the same as with three predecessors) protects the City: "We don't have an expense problem. We have a revenue problem."

Ice plant and facility

  • O'Neil: only one of two chillers was replaced in an earlier emergency, along with failing piping under the penalty boxes; the ice plant was not in phase two of the facilities plan (phase one funded the message boards). Piping dates to the arena's construction about 25 years ago. He wants a status review and noted the building hosts the high school hockey championships and a charity hockey game, and that the NCAA is moving regional tournaments back to campuses.
  • Sweeney: the Legends facilities division will perform a venue assessment in September (interior, exterior, AC and the two ice chillers, one running and one in support), to be shared with the committee and used for multi-year planning. O'Neil said a higher-level study may be needed and asked whether the contractor SimCo should be brought in.

Surplus and revenue sharing

  • Dexter asked how surplus returns to the City; Sweeney: operating expenses are paid from revenue, any net is split between Legends and the City, and part goes to a capital fund. Fiscal year 2025 is being tied out, including any surplus owed to the City. Dexter would like some of it to go to downtown infrastructure around the arena.
  • O'Neil suggested a future presentation by "Sharon" (apparently Finance Director Wickens) on the funding "buckets" (debt service and capital); he understood fiscal year 2025 was a very good year with revenue sharing not yet received.

Hockey

  • Barry recalled the Monarchs and an earlier ECHL attempt and said the right organization could succeed, preferably AHL but ECHL realistically. Stefansson asked how to handle an inquiry; O'Neil said the committee should be involved. O'Neil noted no New England arena is identical to Manchester and closed asking the guests to tell corporate "we need some help in getting some shows in." Stefansson: "content, content, content."

Sources