A modest uptick in casino-tax revenue will allow Nationwide Arena to go forward with one major maintenance project - replacing part of the heating and cooling system - but officials continue to search for ways to fund a goal of $2 million in updates and repairs each year.

A modest uptick in casino-tax revenue will allow Nationwide Arena to go forward with one major maintenance project � replacing part of the heating and cooling system � but officials continue to search for ways to fund a goal of $2 million in updates and repairs each year.

Don Brown, executive director of the Franklin County Convention Facilities Authority, said the authority still is figuring out how to pay for additional upgrades such as new seats in the arena, which opened in 2000.

The center's rainy-day fund has about $1.75 million, the same as at the beginning of its fiscal year in July. Next on the to-do list at the arena is the replacement of two cooling towers that are part of the building's HVAC system. The cost wasn't immediately available.

The arena, which was taken over by the facilities authority in 2012, made a net operating profit of just under $250,000 in the first half of its fiscal year, from July through December; event revenue was $10.8 million.

Beyond an annual $2.1 contribution from the facilities authority, virtually all of the arena's revenue comes from rental income. That sum, unlike parking and concessions, is consistent regardless of the event or act at Nationwide, said Xen Riggs, the arena's CEO.

For example, the arena doesn't suffer a loss when the Columbus Blue Jackets attract fewer fans, which has been the case this season. A spokeswoman said home-game attendance has totaled 399,787, an 8.5 percent decrease from last season.

Meanwhile, the Greater Columbus Convention Center, which like the arena is managed by the facilities authority, reported a $1.8 million decline in income in the 2015 calendar year compared with 2014. The decline was attributed in great part to an ongoing $125 million renovation project that prevented some space from being rented.

The project is scheduled to be completed next year, and convention center officials expect it to restrain 2016 results as well. However, they see it as an investment that will quickly begin paying dividends.

mrose@dispatch.com