by April Scheinoha
Reporter
VenuWorks will be serving the City of Thief River Falls for 13 more days. At its meeting Tuesday, May 21, the Thief River Falls City Council approved extending VenuWorks’ contract termination date to allow for a smooth transition to another venue management firm.
Council member Jason Aarestad abstained from voting since he and country artist Jake McVey had together earlier submitted a proposal to manage the four venues.
As part of a separate, related matter, the council approved an on-sale intoxicating liquor license at Ralph Engelstad Arena. Aarestad also abstained from voting for that matter. Alcohol currently isn’t served at REA.
VenuWorks contract extension
VenuWorks’ contract will now terminate Sunday, June 30. Oak View Group 360, the firm that manages the Alerus Center in Grand Forks, N.D., is negotiating with the city to manage REA, the Huck Olson Memorial Civic Center, Multi-Events Center and Thief River Falls Tourist Park on behalf of the city. VenuWorks has already agreed to the contract extension, which also coincides with the end of the fiscal quarter.
City Administrator Angie Philipp said the extension will also give Oak View Group 360 additional time to obtain licenses.
Council member Mike Lorenson voiced some concerns. He noted that he continues to be in favor of starting negotiations with another venue management company. However, Lorenson said that the city is already offering permits, other licenses and a time extension even though the council hasn’t signed a contract with Oak View Group 360. He said, “We’re losing our negotiation power here.”
Lorenson advocated for a time extension longer than two weeks to seriously negotiate.
Mayor Brian Holmer replied that three council members, Philipp and City Attorney Delray Sparby serve on the negotiating team. The council members are Megan Arlt, Anthony Bolduc and Michele McCraw.
Lorenson realized that the city is short on time. However, he continued to advocate for a longer time extension. Lorenson reiterated that the city shouldn’t give the impression that this is a done deal. He said the city needs to verify that Oak View Group 360 will do a good job for the city.
Holmer recommended that the city move forward with this route unless the negotiating team felt otherwise.
Philipp noted that the city gave a 180-day termination notice to VenuWorks and the request for proposals indicated a June 17 start date. Oak View Group 360 requested more time and it’s trying to conform to the city’s dates. Philipp added that VenuWorks agreed to the time extension. Philipp said the contract may be ready for full council consideration in June. She said the city needs to have this contract in process in order to be ready by July 1.
Sparby said the negotiating team has reviewed the 30-some page contract. He hoped that the two sides would have an agreement within a month.
Lorenson replied that the council owes it to the taxpayers to ensure Oak View Group 360 will do a great job.
Holmer replied that the city has already given VenuWorks an 180-day notice. He added that VenuWorks has already agreed to an additional two weeks.
In December, the council signified its desire to terminate its agreement with VenuWorks. The city holds a five-year agreement with VenuWorks that stipulates the city may exercise an option to terminate the agreement at any time during the fourth year as long as it provides at least a 180-day written notice. The firm has managed the four facilities since September 2019 when an interim agreement was signed. The five-year management agreement began Jan. 1, 2020.
For 2023, three of the four properties were operating at a total deficit of $515,854. The deficit includes VenuWorks’ contract of $106,877 as well as a $94,702.21 deficit to operate the MEC. The Tourist Park operated at a profit due to the number of Express Employment Professionals employees working at DigiKey and staying at the city-owned campground.
On May 7, the council agreed to negotiate with Oak View Group 360 for the firm to manage the venues. Besides Oak View Group 360, other proposals came from MAV Group and VenuWorks. MAV Group is owned by Aarestad and McVey. Last fall, Aarestad hosted a concert featuring McVey and Priscilla Block at Ralph Engelstad Arena.
In a separate, related matter, the council approved an on-sale intoxicating liquor license for Global Spectrum LP. The liquor license will span from July 1 to Dec. 31 at REA. As noted earlier, Aarestad abstained from voting.