EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Evansville’s Redevelopment Commission voted Friday to accept a five-year contract for the IceMen to play hockey at the new downtown arena, ending an impasse that held up the release of the Central Hockey League’s 2011-12 schedule. 
Icemen owner Ron Geary appeared before the Redevelopment Commission on August 2nd and asked for their help to end a stalemate between the team and the city on a deal to play at the arena. Geary, an attorney and certified public accountant, also owns the Ellis Park Race Course in Henderson, Kentucky, about 15 minutes south of downtown Evansville. The original proposal that the IceMen organization submitted to the city late last year offered to pay a flat rate between $6,000.00 and $7,000.00 per game with no revenue from alcohol sales. This is in line with what the city was looking to receive and helped the IceMen win the hockey rights to play in the new arena over two teams from other leagues.
However, revenue sharing from food and beverages became a point of contention when the IceMen and the city began negotiations in March. The city offered to place the per-game rent on a sliding scale based on attendance figures. If fewer than 3,500 people attended a game, the IceMen would pay more; if there were more than 3,500 in attendance, the team would pay less. But Geary felt that a share in alcohol sales was worth fighting for, and in the end, he got what he wanted.
According to the 35-page contract, the IceMen will reportedly pay $10,400.00 per game with a $1,000.00 credit for each home game during the 2011-12 season. The IceMen will have an opportunity to receive a percentage of revenue from alcohol sales – dependent on the number of fans in attendance. If less than 2,000 fans are in attendance, the IceMen receive no alcohol revenue. If more than 3,500 are in attendance, they will receive 10% of all alcohol revenue.
The deal is said to be similar to the contract between the city and the University of Evansville for its basketball team. In that deal, the university will pay $10,500.00 per game and also receive a small percentage of alcohol sales.
With the ratification of the contract, the Central Hockey League can now finalize its regular season schedule, which is expected to be released next week.
The IceMen will travel to Moline, Ill. to play the Quad City Mallards in a pre-season match set for 4:00 p.m. on October 15th. Their regular season w ill open on the road while construction of the new arena is completed. Their home opener is set for November 5th against their in-state rival, the Fort Wayne Komets.
Contact the writer at robert.keith@prohockeynews.com
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