Houston Harwood and Jon Webb, Evansville Courier & Press
EVANSVILLE — The soon-to-be former management firm behind Evansville's Old National Events Plaza notified local officials it would terminate 248 employees as its contract to operate the concert hall and conference center expires.
But in the Aug. 1 letter to Evansville Mayor Stephanie Terry, ASM Global said most of the affected employees would transition to VenuWorks, the company tapped in July by the Vanderburgh County Commission to operate the Old National Events Plaza and the Old Courthouse Ballroom once ASM steps aside.
The deal cemented VenuWorks’ presence in Downtown Evansville, where the Iowa-based company already oversees operations at the Ford Center and The Victory Theatre.
“Our employees at the venue will be terminated effective Aug. 31,” ASM Global Human Resources Director Kim Miller wrote in the letter. “These layoffs are expected to be permanent and will affect approximately 15 full-time workers and 233 part-time workers.”
Miller added that “most” of the workers “will be transitioning to the new company taking over the contract." The letter doesn't provide specific numbers.
After this story initially published, Vanderburgh County Commission President Justin Elpers told the Courier & Press that VenuWorks will hold three open houses for part-time employees looking to transition to new management.
They will take place Friday, Aug. 15 from 4 to 6 p.m.; Saturday, Aug. 16 from 9 a.m. to noon; and Monday, Aug. 18 from noon to 3 p.m. They'll offer interviews for full-timers interested in staying on next week.
In late July, Elpers and Commissioners Amy Canterbury and Mike Goebel voted to allow VenuWorks to take over management of ONEP and the Old Courthouse Ballroom through 2027.
“VenuWorks brings over three decades of experience managing arenas, convention centers, theaters, outdoor spaces and community venues across the United States,” the company said in a statement announcing the ONEP deal, which it deemed a “win for Evansville.”
ASM Global had been set to run things for the next two-and-half years, but the company agreed to “wind down” operations as part of what Elpers described in July as a “collaborative breakup."
In the minutes for the commission's July 29 meeting, County Attorney Mike Schopmeyer, of Kahn, Dees, Donovan and Kahn, said the changeover avoided an “ugly situation” that “would have cost the taxpayers a lot of money” had local officials not been able to work closely and expeditiously with ASM Global.
Schopmeyer said a committee comprised of city, council and Visit Evansville – formerly the Convention & Visitors Bureau – got together to track returns on investments for the innkeeper's tax: money paid by tourists who visit hotels and motels in Evansville and Vanderburgh County.
That money goes to various entities and projects, with some of it flowing into ONEP. After the committee's study, Schopmeyer said the return-on-investment at ONEP was "10 to 20 times" worse than at places like Deaconess Sports Park and the Goebel Soccer Complex. Based on the findings, they decided the relationship with ASM was "probably not remediable."
For its part, VenuWorks vowed to “maximize every dollar” of inkeeper’s tax investment. The company maintains that bringing management of ONEP, the Ford Center and The Victory Theater under one roof provides cost-cutting opportunities.
During the July 29 meeting, Schopmeyer repeatedly compared the situation with ASM Global to a "divorce."
"We're a law firm so we understand how divorces work," he said. "... To ASM's credit, they worked with us."
Commissioners voted to wind down the contract with ASM before agreeing to pass it on to VenuWorks, which will take over Sept. 1.
The county will pay VenuWorks an annual flat fee of $120,000 in monthly, $10,000 increments and an annual food and beverage sales percentage fee equal to 5% of concessions revenue.