Finley Stadium plans to add a new $600,000 scoreboard
Work is being done at Finley Stadium to improve fan experience. New chairs have been ordered and will be installed this month creating a premium seating area. Improved accommodations for handicapped attendees are also included in the seating project. Two handicapped platforms have already been built and installation of the new seating is scheduled to be complete by May 1.
At the board meeting Tuesday morning, unanimous approval was also given to purchase a video board that will replace the current scoreboard.
This addition has come to be expected, said Chairman of the Board Gordon Davenport, and should help provide new opportunities to users of the stadium. The best bid for the board is $600,000. The city of Chattanooga and Hamilton County have each pledged $300,000 to Finley Stadium this year and there is $250,000-$300,000 in capital reserves to cover the cost of this capital project.
Executive Director Chris Thomas gave the financial report that shows a positive net income for the stadium facility year-to-date, exceeding the budget by about $42,000. Contributing to that amount is additional use of the stadium’s catering services headed by Sarah Hooper. She said $18,000 was kept in-house from providing food for 2,000 participants of the Chattanooga Marathon as well as the VIP tent for the event. This year the CFC will not use the Stadium Club, said Ms. Hooper, so it is available for corporations that could use it for gatherings during the matches. Another source of income for the catering arm of the stadium will be the sale of wine and liquor-by-the-drink. Application has been made to the TABC and it is hoped that a liquor license will be received by the first CFC match. The stadium already has a beer license.
Parking is becoming an increasingly important source of revenue for the facility. Parking has been outsourced to Republic Parking, which has installed kiosks in the parking lots and will provide enforcement for day-to-day parking, day and night. Surrounding businesses are using the parking lots when they are not being used for events held at Finley Stadium. This arrangement will reduce employees handling cash and will reduce the stadium’s liability, it was stated. During times of traditional events for the stadium and pavilion, staff hired by the stadium will manage parking.
There are 187 upcoming events on the calendar from April through December 2018. This includes 128 events booked for the stadium, 53 for the pavilion with 30 of those are reserved for the Chattanooga Market on Sundays. Six events are planned in the Stadium Club and there are 10 tentative events.
Sean McDaniel, executive director of the Chattanooga Football Club, gave the board an overview of what is up-coming for the CFC which is considered an important partner with the stadium. The match with Detroit City on April 21 will start the season after preliminary matches with FC Dallas and Nashville Soccer in February and March. He said that the CFC is a beneficiary of developments that have happened in Chattanooga and that the top-notch facility is partly what brings professional, national and international teams and spectators here. “It’s the city’s club,” he said.
The board approved a 10-year agreement with Moc Sports Properties, which will replace the existing agreement. The only dissenting vote from board member Tim Kelly was related to the condition that allows permanent signage to stay up except with a 60-day notice. His concern is that some sponsors may be exclusive to the CFC and others are not participating in CFC sponsorships. Mr. Davenport said that conflicts can be considered on a case-by-case basis.