Oak View Group Facilities named Shura Garnett, CVE, a highly respected convention center expert, as Senior Vice President, Convention Centers. She will lead the company’s expansion into convention center management, as well as oversee Oak View Group Facilities’ current convention centers. She will report to Oak View Group Facilities President Hank Abate.

“Shura Garnett is well-regarded and one of the most experienced leaders in convention center management in our industry,” Abate said. “She is a past chair of the IAVM, and brings with her a great deal of knowledge, insight and vision to help Oak View Group Facilities expand and grow our convention center business.”

“I have had the pleasure of working with Shura over the past 20 years, and I know firsthand the impact she will make on our convention center business,” said Peter Luukko, Chairman, Oak View Group Facilities. “She is well known throughout the industry and we are fortunate to have her as a member of our team.”

“I have tremendous respect for Peter, Hank, and the Oak View Group’s senior management,” Garnett said. “I’m excited to join the team and help attract a great deal of new business for Oak View Group Facilities and offer my experiences to many of the nation’s great convention centers.”

Garnett joins Oak View Group Facilities from Spectra where she most recently served as Divisional Senior Vice President overseeing the company’s 5.2-million-square-feet of convention center space, and mid-west region of facilities, including the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, IA; and the Chaifetz Arena on the Campus of Saint Louis University in St. Louis, MO.

With over 25 years of industry experience, Garnett has held positions as a Director and CEO of the Midland Convention Center and the Vice President of Visitor Development for the Midland Chamber of Commerce. She previously served as a Board Member of Trade Show Executives Exposition Forecasting Board and the Center for Exhibition Industry Research Foundation.

Formerly, Garnett was on the Board of Directors for the St. Charles Chamber of Commerce, elected to the Texas Department of Economic Development’s Tourism Advisory Committee.

As part of her IAVM activities, she currently serves on the Diversity and Inclusion Committee and previously served as Chairman of the IAVM Convention Center Committee, member of the Industry Affairs Committee, member of the Board of Governors, Chair of the Board of Education, and Chair of the Diversification Committee. She was then elected 1st Vice President of the IAVM and worked her way through the chairs to become the Chairman of the Board of the IAVM. She is a current member of ASAE, IAEE, IAVM, MPI, and PCMA. She is the recipient of the 2008 St. Charles Zonta Yellow Rose Award, the 2008 recipient of Venue’s Today’s “Women of Influence” Award, the recipient of the 2005 IAVM Presidential Citation in 2005 and most recently the 2014 recipient of the prestigious Charles A McElravy Award, the 27th recipient since 1963.

With less than one month to go before Quicken Loans Arena opens its doors again for the start of the 2018-19 Cleveland Cavaliers, Monsters, concert and event season, work continues at a feverish pace. As it enters its 25th year of operation, the publicly-owned arena is being transformed into a state-of-the-art facility that will allow it to compete for years to come. The continuing project also has resulted in the extension of the Cavaliers lease at The Q, committing to the arena for at least 40 years since its original lease, which is among the longest facility tenures in pro sports.

Crews are making significant progress on both the exterior and interior renovations of the building, which will include the completion of several interior spaces by the time The Q re-opens this October. The project will be completed in October 2019.

The Q Transformation, made possible by a public/private partnership formed between the City of Cleveland, Cuyahoga County and the Cleveland Cavaliers, will modernize the publicly-owned venue and allow it to compete for and attract high-profile events, improve the guest experience, and ensure that it positively impacts for the City of Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, the community and neighborhoods, and the region for the long-term future. It will also extend the Cavs lease all the way to 2034 – putting the Cavs in The Q for at least 40 years total since they moved into the building in 1994, one of the longest terms in the NBA.

Dan Gilbert and the Cavs organization are committing an additional $45 million of private funding towards additional updates and improvements to The Q. This raises the team’s current private funding commitment to over $115 million, while the Transformation project’s total investment scope now grows to $185 million.

The original $140 million investment for the project was a 50/50 split with the Cavaliers committed to paying $70 million, plus covering any cost overruns. The Cavaliers’ portion of the funding will cover all non-public, club, suite, team, premium space, AV/LED, lighting and multi-media upgrades, as well as a significant portion of the public space updates, which includes concourse improvements and square footage increases.

The existing $70 million capped, public portion of funding will be repaid almost entirely from direct, arena event-related revenue sources and is being used to complete the remaining portion of the public space re-design, as well as the associated square footage increases. The revenue sources are primarily comprised of the existing Admissions Tax on tickets sold for events at The Q.

A restoration of the roof at the Portland Expo Center has diverted 83 tons of material from landfills, material that would have otherwise resulted from a tear-off of the 200,000 square feet of roof surface area for Exhibit Halls D, E and the Connector.

Working with Anderson Roofing, Tremco provided a 30-year warranty on the AlphaGuard product used to seal the roofing. By using the liquid applied roofing system under professional installation, the Expo Roof project evolved from a complete tear-off into an environmentally friendly and sustainable roof restoration project.

“The Expo Center Roof Restoration project is the largest of its kind in the Portland area. Metro saved $1,900,000 in expenditures and the equivalent of 240 dump truck loads of roof debris from going directly to the landfill,” said project manager Jesse Flores.

Flores works in Metro’s construction project management office and provided exceptional oversight of the restoration which was completed $500,000 under budget in a time when most construction costs are escalating exponentially. Sealing the roof for waterproofing continuity was ultimately both the most sustainable and strongest economic option for this public asset.

At the project kickoff, the Portland Expo and Metro project team instilled the value of diversifying construction and the trades to all companies who submitted a bid on the project. Of the four qualified roofing contractors in the area, Anderson Roofing Company was selected as the most qualified bidder for the project and secured veteran-owned COBID subcontractor, Stryker Sheet Metal, for the gutters and downspouts needed on the restoration. The team also worked with SEA Architects and Professional Roofing Consultants for oversight on the project.

“I am thrilled with the finished product and the efforts put forth by Anderson Roofing as our primary contractor to complete this project on time, and under budget. We were able to complete the project with zero impact to our events and seamlessly for our patrons over an 18-month period. Additionally, Tremco assisted Sterling Pacific with gaining their certification to become the first COBID contractor able to apply AlphaGuard on future roof restorations,” said Matthew P. Rotchford, Expo executive director.

Billboard announced the acquisition of leading live entertainment news site Amplify Media Inc., the company announced on its website in a release. Billboard gained full ownership of Amplify on June 18, 2018.

As part of the acquisition, Amplify founder Dave Brooks has joined Billboard’s full-time staff as a senior correspondent, along with writer Taylor Mims, and will lead Billboard’s touring and live entertainment coverage.

Brooks started Amplify in 2014 to provide inside stories from the live music touring industry. In addition, Brooks created The Real, a daily newsletter speaking to topics in the industry.

Both Amplify and The Real continue under the guidance of Brooks, who will additionally work to enhance Billboard’s coverage of concerts and touring. Amplify will continue to operate from its offices in Long Beach.

Brooks has extensive experience in the music/concert/touring world in a career that has also included working for publications Venues Today and Pollstar.

One of Brooks’ major upcoming assignments is programming Billboard’s Live Music Summit & Awards that will be held November 13-14 and brings together artists and concert industry practitioners.

By Andrew Shreve

Similar to other industries, the process of developing as a professional is an enduring one, with lots of twists and unexpected turns, but those of us in this niche venue management industry have to start at square 1. Some may be more fortunate than others where square 1 could be a mid-level manager position but we all add value to our respected departments within our venues and had to start somewhere.

Like most, square 1 for me was seeking part-time jobs, internships, and volunteer opportunities that would give me the necessary experience and prepare me for my first full-time job. While still being “green” in the industry and solidifying my first full-time gig, I looked into IAVM and sought out a career development program where I could grow as a venue professional and hone my skill set that would allow me to be successful.

Starting out in operations, I was eager to broaden my knowledge base, develop a personal brand, and learn about different aspects of the industry, especially on the booking side. To quench my thirst for this endeavor, I sought out a career development program in the Mentor Connector Program, a one-on-one, 12-month partnership where mentees develop and expand on their professional network, seek out a range of career opportunities, and identify specific goals to accomplish throughout the program with their mentor. A couple ways I was able to accomplish these objectives, while creating some long-lasting friendships, was attending my first VenueConnect as part of the inaugural 30-Under-30 Class in Baltimore of 2015, and being one of the Class Representatives at IAVM’s Venue Management School the summer of 2017–2018.

While I was going through the Program in 2014-2015, I reflected back on some individuals (college professors, internship supervisors, etc.) that have impacted and showed an overall investment in my professional development. One of my old professors offered this piece of advice, “Throughout your career, wherever you are, however far you climb, remember you are never too good to have a mentor.”

While this may seem generic or cliché, this piece of advice has resonated within me and will continue to fuel the fire I have for this industry. Today, I still talk each of my mentors and often conduct informational interviews with industry professionals I have met along the way. So far, my journey has opened a window of opportunities that I would have never envisioned when I started out, and I have been grateful to have received some recognition and accolades through the IAVM Foundation. My involvement with IAVM all started by seeking out a mentorship through the Mentor Connector Program, and I will continue to give back to the program that ignited my professional development.

If you are interested in learning more about IAVM’s Mentor Connector Program, check our webpage (https://www.iavm.org/mentor-connector-program) and be sure to tune in to our Mentoring Connector Webinar on Thursday, September 27 at 12:30pm PST/3:30pm EST.

You may just impact the life of some-“green”-venue-professional and enhance your contribution to the industry.

Andrew Shreve is the acting Vice Chair of the Young Professionals Committee and serves on the Mentoring Committee.