Menu
Download the app

SBJ subscribers – Enhance your experience with the revamped iOS app

Facilities

Developer Willard Hackerman Offers To Finance Proposed Downtown Baltimore Arena

Baltimore city officials said that developer Willard Hackerman “has offered to finance and build an 18,500-seat arena in downtown Baltimore,” freeing taxpayers from “having to foot the bill and significantly increasing the chances that plans for a $900 million convention center expansion and arena will become a reality,” according to Edward Gunts of the Baltimore SUN. Greater Baltimore Committee officials said that Hackerman “has been actively involved in planning for the arena and convention center expansion, and hired Ayers Saint Gross, a Baltimore-based architecture firm, to develop the designs unveiled Wednesday.” GBC officials and others said that Hackerman “has the financial ability to raise private money for both the arena and hotel and that he wants Whiting-Turner to build them.” GBC President & CEO Donald Fry said that “much of the project's appeal” to Hackerman is the “combination of an arena and an expanded convention center in one location.” Ayers Saint Gross architect Adam Gross said that “while other cities combine arenas and convention centers, none has united facilities the size of those proposed for Baltimore.” Fry said that Hackerman's offer “is contingent on the convention center expansion's moving ahead and being connected to the arena to create one project.” He said that “planners would seek city and state funding for the convention center expansion, making the project a public-private partnership.” Fry said that based on the preliminary designs, the hotel is “expected to cost $175 million and the arena $325 million -- a total of $500 million that would be covered by Hackerman and his investment group” (Baltimore SUN, 5/26).

SBJ Morning Buzzcast: March 25, 2024

NFL meeting preview; MLB's opening week ad effort and remembering Peter Angelos.

Big Get Jay Wright, March Madness is upon us and ESPN locks up CFP

On this week’s pod, our Big Get is CBS Sports college basketball analyst Jay Wright. The NCAA Championship-winning coach shares his insight with SBJ’s Austin Karp on key hoops issues and why being well dressed is an important part of his success. Also on the show, Poynter Institute senior writer Tom Jones shares who he has up and who is down in sports media. Later, SBJ’s Ben Portnoy talks the latest on ESPN’s CFP extension and who CBS, TNT Sports and ESPN need to make deep runs in the men’s and women's NCAA basketball tournaments.

SBJ I Factor: Nana-Yaw Asamoah

SBJ I Factor features an interview with AMB Sports and Entertainment Chief Commercial Office Nana-Yaw Asamoah. Asamoah, who moved over to AMBSE last year after 14 years at the NFL, talks with SBJ’s Ben Fischer about how his role model parents and older sisters pushed him to shrive, how the power of lifelong learning fuels successful people, and why AMBSE was an opportunity he could not pass up. Asamoah is 2021 SBJ Forty Under 40 honoree. SBJ I Factor is a monthly podcast offering interviews with sports executives who have been recipients of one of the magazine’s awards.

Shareable URL copied to clipboard!

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Daily/Issues/2011/05/26/Facilities/Baltimore-Arena.aspx

Sorry, something went wrong with the copy but here is the link for you.

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Daily/Issues/2011/05/26/Facilities/Baltimore-Arena.aspx

CLOSE