Civic center is the missing piece in Marion County's profile

As Marion grew rapidly over the last few decades to 350,000 residents, local municipalities expanded infrastructure in an attempt to keep the county from bursting at the seams.

Agencies have planned, and built, many highways to provide easier access to different areas of the sprawling county, which is larger than Rhode Island. Planning and zoning boards have attempted to manage the growth.

But as the community has grown, officials have yet to accomplish one key step: construction of a special events center, also known as a convention center or civic center. The area does not have a large indoor venue to host big events such as basketball tournaments, large concerts, graduations and conventions.

The College of Central Florida holds graduation ceremonies inside the First Baptist Church of Ocala’s large sanctuary, which is the largest indoor venue in the county. The area’s seven mainstream high schools hold graduation outside in their football stadiums or under the covered Southeastern Livestock Pavilion, often battling Florida’s oppressive heat and sudden thunderstorms.

Area businesses and groups have all but outgrown smaller venues, such as the Ocala Hilton and Circle Square Cultural Center, for conventions, annual meetings, theatrical performances and concerts. Often these facilities are just too small.

All that could change in the near future. Spearheaded by the County Commission, along with the Tourist Development Council, there is a movement afoot to build a multi-use facility. Previous efforts have come and gone without action, but it appears the new effort is picking up steam.

Funding source available

As the economy has been improving since the end of the recession, motel occupancy rates have climbed, from 47.3 percent in January 2011 to 68.8 percent in January 2016. On top of that, the County Commission has doubled the local tax (from 2 percent to 4 percent) on short-term lodging. In 2008-09, the county collected $854,000 from the 2 percent bed tax. During this fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30, the county is on pace to collect about $3 million.

Now that everything is aligning, the time is right to build that long-awaited venue. County Commission Chairman Carl Zalak said a $25 million facility could be financed with bonds, and proposed the loan would be paid back with bed tax revenue over about 10 years.

The commission “is looking into options and forming the building blocks to move forward,” Zalak said during a recent interview.

County government staff is developing a scope of the project to bring to the Tourist Development Council on May 11. That scope will give direction to a consultant to conduct a feasibility analysis to determine location, cost and other aspects.

‘It has to be done right’

It is no secret that government-funded multi-use facilities are controversial. Many residents all across the country balk when tax dollars are used to build a facility that, in most cases, loses money.

In fact, most operating budgets of government-owned multi-use facilities have a line item for operation losses. Some of the nation’s largest convention centers lose millions annually, while smaller ones (like the one that is being proposed locally) lose several hundred thousand dollars annually.

Proponents say that operating losses are just a part of doing business, and that the losses are more than offset by the spending of visitors. Big events draw big crowds of people who need lodging, fuel and food.

“It has to be done right,” said Danny Gaekwad, who owns many motels in Marion County. “I looked at building one (a civic center) myself because of the impact it could have on this community. I support it.”

Gaekwad, who chairs the Tourist Development Council, said he believes the facility needs to be visible from Interstate 75. Zalak would prefer a location near a signature ecotourism area, like Silver Springs.

Kevin Sheilley, president and CEO of the Ocala/Marion County Chamber & Economic Partnership (CEP), said that Marion County is the perfect place to have a regional special events center; the closest such venues are the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach and the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando. The reason Sheilley said “regional” is because larger civic centers in places like Orlando are attracting more state and national convention and trade shows.

Officials note that a special events center would draw from a population of 750,000 people in Marion and surrounding counties. The multi-use facility in Ocala would need to host regional events that will attract local residents in North Central Florida.

Sheilley noted that with Marion County rapidly becoming a logistics distribution hub (thanks to the arrival of FedEx, Chewy, Inc., and AutoZone), it only makes sense that the county needs a special events center.

Different visions, same concept

An online publication called Successful Meetings spelled out what communities need to consider when building a modern day special events center. A story from 2014 states that the facility must be flexible, meaning it can be changed from a trade show floor space to concert seating easily.

It must include a lobby that can serve as an art exhibition area to attract local residents, must have some meeting space, food and beverage areas, must offer aesthetically pleasing greenery outside, be an anchor for neighborhood development, and be altruistic.

Zalak’s vision is similar. He would target expositions and trade shows that meld with Marion County’s ecotourism offerings. Think diving, biking, hiking, kayaking, fishing.

“Marion County can also offer a more competitive price point for conferences, conventions and trade shows that some of our bigger city neighbors simply can’t match,” Zalak said.

Zalak also noted that attending a trade show or convention is not just about the event center itself. Attendees look at what the area has to offer for their families. If trade shows and conventions were geared toward Marion’s vast ecotourism market, attendees will be in awe of what the county has to offer.

Filling the summer void

Besides the obvious ecotourism opportunities, a special events center in Marion could be a perfect location for state basketball playoffs, volleyball tournaments, cheerleading competitions, band contests, robotics championships, indoor archery, traveling Broadway shows and concerts from bigger names in show business.

May through September is the slowest time of year for Marion County motels. It's busier between October and April, when temperatures are more bearable. During the slow period the average occupancy rate is 57.7 percent; it's 69.8 percent during the cooler months. A civic center would allow for indoor events to be held over the summer.

Between 2009 and 2016, the average room rate grew from $66.26 to $81.16. Combined with a rise in the occupancy rate by 36.4 percent, revenues soared during that same period by 67 percent, from $46.2 million in 2009 to $77.2 million in 2016.

“A volleyball tournament, a badminton tournament or any other tournament during the summer would be very beneficial for us,” Gaekwad said.

Marion County currently has 4,000 motel rooms and other lodging opportunities. If a multi-use facility is built locally, officials say that number will begin to rise significantly to meet the needs.

Other nearby venues

The Ocean Center in Daytona Beach is the closest to Marion County, just little over an hour from Ocala. It opened nearly 32 years ago with 60,000 square feet. It is now 205,000 square feet, with a 42,146-square-foot arena that seats 9,300.

In the 1990s, it was home to the Daytona Beach Sun Devils of the Sunshine Hockey League and the Daytona Beach Breakers of the Southern Hockey League. In 2006-08, the facility was home to the Daytona Beach Thunder in the Arena Football 2 development league. The arena can host concerts, sporting events and has room to seat 1,008 in a banquet style configuration. The arena has room for 214 10x10 booths.

The facility also has a 93,028-square-foot exhibition hall with room for 504 10x10 booths. It also has a 11,904-square-foot ballroom and 32,000 square feet of meeting space.

More in line of what may be built in Ocala would be the Kissimmee Civic Center, which is a fitness center and meeting facility. That venue “hosts sporting events to include volleyball, basketball, boxing and more with seating up to 3,400,” the center’s website states.

The grand ballroom accommodates large and small groups, with seating up to 400. The trade show area measures 16,000 square feet.

The Lakeland Center is a multi-use facility that offers many venues under one roof, according to its website:

+ The George Jenkins Arena: The 7,500-seat area hosts an array of events, including concerts, rodeos, basketball tournaments, arena football, volleyball, cheerleading competitions, dog shows, monster trucks, ice skating and so much more.

+ The Youkey Theatre: As a full-service Broadway theater, it is home of the Imperial Symphony Orchestra of Polk County. The Lakeland Center's annual Broadway & Entertainment series takes place here, as well as dance competitions, concerts, comedy shows and numerous other special events.

+ The Exhibit Hall & Sikes Hall: It is a 50,000-square-foot flexible meeting space and exhibition hall. Trade and consumer shows, banquets for up to 1,500, seminars, conventions and meetings will benefit from this flexible space.

The need is great

The CEP’s Sheilley gave an example of why a multi-use facility is so desperately needed. The CEP’s annual meeting is coming up and the event will be held at the Circle Square Cultural Center at On Top of the World retirement community. Sheilley said he had to cap attendance at 600.

“We’re sold out and we are still eight weeks away,” Sheilley said. “We have a population of 350,000 people and we do not have a special events center. That really is amazing if you think about it.”

Sheilley noted that the Southeastern Livestock Pavilion can hold 4,200 to 7,000 people. However, it is open air under a large roof and it gets hot in the summer. The Reilly Arts Center, which is more of a concert and play venue, holds roughly 625 people. That’s why CF, which used to hold its graduations outside on campus and was often interrupted by rain, now uses First Baptist Church. The college is limited to 2,225 graduates and their family members.

Zalak said the feasibility study will help clarify the appropriate size, location and cost of a facility. The report can't come soon enough for some.

"We desperately need this in our community,” Sheilley said.

Joe Callahan can be reached at 867-4113 or at joe.callahan@starbanner.com. Follow him on Twitter @JoeOcalaNews.