Pirates tee up options
The owner of the Portland Pirates says he is pleased the hockey team and Cumberland County Civic Center Board of Trustees were able to do a two-year lease extension, but he says the team could end up building its own arena if the civic center is not renovated.
Brian Petrovek, managing owner and CEO of the Pirates American Hockey League franchise, told Mainebiz he consulted with a real estate broker about a potential site in Portland that could be developed into a 4,500-seat, multi-use arena.
Petrovek says he has also discussed building an arena in Saco off Exit 36 on 22 acres owned by Orthopaedic Associates that is adjacent to an ice rink the team uses for practices and training. Petrovek would not disclose where in Portland the team had discussed pursuing a new arena or which commercial real estate broker may be involved.
His first preference would be to see Cumberland County voters approve a bond in November 2011 to help pay for millions in renovations to the 33-year-old Civic Center. But he says he has to start looking at alternatives in case voters say no.
"I wish I had a crystal ball to know what the taxpayer is thinking," says Petrovek. "At the end of the day, we feel the peninsula is the best place for our business to be."
Petrovek says the Pirates didn't gain much from the two-year lease extension and it will be a challenge to reduce operating costs and keep ticket prices down. The lease extension calls for reducing the team's rent from $2,500 to $1,500 per home game and would waive a box-office service fee, which will save the Pirates up to $11,000 per season. It also calls for increasing attendance incentives. But it does not include any revenue sharing for things such as concessions and future naming rights, which is something the Pirates sought.
Both the Pirates and trustees indicated the lease extension gives both parties more time to work toward a mutual goal of renovating the civic center.
Greg Mitchell, director of Portland economic development division, says it is possible for the Pirates to either redevelop existing property on the peninsula where downtown Portland and the waterfront are located, or build on available land off peninsula, which includes areas west of the Maine Turnpike.
"Our preference would be to keep them at their present location," Mitchell says.
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