The State Fair of Texas starts September 26, and I’ve been dreaming of fried food since this year’s Big Tex Choice Awards were announced. But that’s not what I’m writing about here; it’s just that talking about fairs makes me hungry for food, rides, and entertainment that pulls a community together.

“Fairs are unique social events that attract millions of people looking for affordable entertainment, education, food and to be a part of a large, community-oriented, cultural showcase,” wrote Bill Bourne, senior architect technician and senior associate at Populous. “We’ve seen a new business model emerge, where communities invest in fairgrounds as a year-round events complex and central community gathering space. There are a few reasons why fairgrounds & agricultural centers have attracted investment from local communities.”

Check out Bourne’s post on the Populous website to learn more about how fairs bring people together throughout the year and to learn more about the architectural firm’s recent renovations and plans for fairgrounds.

(Big Tex photo credit: ladybugbkt via photopin cc)

Congratulations are in order to the Los Angeles Convention Center (LACC), which has reached several financial and performance milestones since AEG Facilities took over the venue in December 2013.

According to final figures for a budget year that concluded on June 30, the LACC reported a $290,000 operational surplus. Other financial milestones the LACC is reporting include parking revenue increasing by $1 million, wages and salaries finishing $1.5 million lower than the previous year, increased usage and revenue from film and television production by 140 percent while new sustainability programs initiated in just the past six months have decreased electrical usage by 2 percent and decreased water usage by 10 percent year to year.

“Transitioning the Los Angeles Convention Center from a publicly operated entity to private management was a major undertaking, one that AEG Facilities implemented seamlessly,” said Bud Ovrom, executive director of the Los Angeles Department of Convention & Tourism Development. “We are very pleased with what AEG accomplished this first year, not only significantly improving the operational efficiencies and the bottom line, but also improving the customer service, security, and overall maintenance of our convention center. It took bold political leadership for this city to privatize management of one of our major public facilities, and we know now that selecting AEG Facilities as our partner to embark on this endeavor allowed us to successfully overcome the many challenges and set the LACC on a better course.”

AEG also implemented the initial hiring and training of 82 full-time and 75 part-time employees in 2013, followed by an additional 25 more employees brought on in 2014.

“We are extremely proud of the positive achievements already made at the Los Angeles Convention Center in such a short period of time”, said IAVM member Bob Newman, president of AEG Facilities. “The staff, with the full and unwavering support of the city, has created a true service culture that event planners are already recognizing as best in class in the industry.”

Other LACC accomplishments include hosting and event-managing a total of 167 events held over 298 event days from December 2013 through June 30, 2014; improving overall security and building coverage by increasing staffing numbers and conducting thorough training; and, with the assistance of AEG 1SOURCE, soliciting, negotiating, and completing more than 30 new contracts with service providers, contractors, and suppliers.

(Image via Los Angeles Convention Center Facebook page)

There was a lot of news this past week. Here are some stories that caught our eyes.

Foo Fighters Leave Richmond Fans Happy With Crowd-funded Show
—Richmond Times-Dispatch
“Wednesday’s show was the brainchild of Foo Fighters fans Andrew Goldin, Brig White, John McAdorey and Lucas Krost. Using the online funding platform Tilt, the four raised more than $70,000 to finance Wednesday’s show. ”

#LIKEABOSS: Jason Rittenberry is a New Breed of Entreprenuer
—Amplify
“He’s one helluvan an executive, a top-shelf networker, and one cool and confident dude. He brings many talents to the facilities industry. Just don’t ask him to look under your hood. He’s not much of a mechanic.”

Wembley Stadium to Stage Euro 2020 Final
—Bleacher Report
“UEFA president Michel Platini announced on Friday that Wembley will host the final three games of the European Championships in 2020, a competition that will span an unprecedented 13 countries.”

The Wheels of Woz
—The Meeting Professional
“The designer of the personal computer revolution, Apple Computer co-founder Steve Wozniak, shares best practices for management and innovation while recognizing the complexity of organizing events—and presenting a potentially terrifying tech future.”

NBA Kings Among First Pro Teams To Begin Experimenting With 3D Printing Technology
—SportsBusiness Daily
“For sports teams, perhaps the chief attraction of 3D printing is that it produces items not only with a high degree of accuracy but also in a fraction of the time it used to take to accomplish similar tasks.”

(Image: Richmond Times-Dispatch)

We hope you got the chance at VenueConnect to check out the IAVM Sustainability Committee’s booth and mini-presentations. If not, here is a quick recap of the sessions:

How OCC Achieved LEED Platinum in 2014—by Matt Uchtman
The Oregon Convention Center (OCC) recently achieved LEED Platinum in March 2014. OCC staff explained the steps they took to go from becoming the first LEED Certified convention center in 2004 to achieving LEED Platinum in 2014. Click here for a link to the presentation.

How Pritchard Sports and Entertainment Group Earned Florida Marlins Best Diversion Ratio Recycling Award—by J. Roland Hayden
This presentation covered the recycling efforts at Marlins Park that earned the team an award for the best diversion ratio in the NL East. The creation of the recycling plan was discussed, along with the resources and partners involved, the procedures they enacted, and the results of their efforts. Click here for a link to the presentation.

Who is the Green Sports Alliance—by Martin Tull
The Green Sports Alliance (GSA) is a non-profit organization with a mission to help sports teams, venues, and leagues enhance their environmental performances. GSA members represent more than 230 sports teams and venues from 20 different sports leagues. Since February 2010, the alliance has brought together venue operators, sports team executives, and environmental scientists to exchange information about better practices and develop solutions to their environmental challenges that are cost-competitive and innovative. Follow this link to learn more.

We thank our presenters once again for offering great information for our members. Keep an eye out for the Sustainability Committee at next year’s VenueConnect in Baltimore, Maryland, August 1-4.

There’s been no shortage of press about the technology ingrained throughout Levi’s Stadium, home of the NFL’s San Francisco 49ers. This past week, though, the team played in a sold-out stadium, and the venue’s app passed its first big test.

“We proved on Sunday that what we said we were going to do could be done,” John Paul, VenueNext COO and co-founder, told Kurt Wagner for Re/code. “It couldn’t have gone better.”

Wagner’s story is nice write-up about VenueNext and its plans to expand to other venues.

“If you haven’t heard of VenueNext, there’s a good reason why. The company just launched publicly on Thursday, and currently operates in just one stadium,” Wagner wrote. “It has, however, been in conversations with more than 15 teams and venues over the past year, said Paul, many of which are watching closely to see how the experiment at Levi’s turns out.”

Check out Wagner’s story to learn more about what VenueNext plans to do to improve the user experience in stadiums and what they’re hoping for in December.

(Image: VenueNext)