YOUNGSTOWN — The city-owned Covelli Centre started 2025 with three sell-out shows and a $144,689 operating surplus during the first three months of the year.

“It’s a solid first quarter,” said Eric Ryan, president of JAC Management Group, which operates the center as well as the Youngstown Foundation Amphitheatre and Wean Park for the city. “We’re pleased with how we started.”

The surplus is the ninth best out of 20 first quarters for the center. The record for the first quarter is $382,334 in 2023. Except for its first year and under different management, the Covelli Centre finished every first quarter with an operating surplus.

The center did better in the first quarter than its projected surplus of $128,798.

The center also generated $41,570 for the city from a 5.5% admission tax on tickets during the first three months of the year, said city Finance Director Kyle Miasek.

The sell-out shows in the first quarter were two Professional Bull Riding performances with 5,500 in attendance at both events and a Rascal Flatts concert with 6,000 in attendance, Ryan said.

Also, there were two weekends in March with the Ohio Wrestling Championship elementary and middle school state tournaments that brought about 20,000 people to the area, Ryan said.

“The impact to the region of the wrestling tournaments is tremendous,” he said. “Hotels are sold out and restaurants are full. It’s great for the area.”

During the first three months of the year, only the center hosts events.

The city uses the amphitheater and the park starting in the latter part of the second quarter as the weather is too cold to have outdoor shows during the first three months of the year.

A May 29 concert headlined by Riley Green at the amphitheater was a sell-out with 5,000 in attendance.

The second quarter, between April and June, is the most inconsistent for the facilities. In the previous 19 second quarters, 10 lost money and nine had surpluses, including a $125,053 surplus last year.

Despite the Green concert, Ryan expects the facilities to lose some money in the second quarter.

“April and May are typically tough months for shows,” he said.

But Ryan said the third quarter should be solid with the return of the Y-Live concert to Wean Park.

The Y-Live concert with Tim McGraw, originally scheduled for Aug. 2, 2024, will be Sept. 27 of this year. The show was canceled last year because of the explosion and subsequent demolition of the former Realty Tower downtown near the facilities.

“We’ll be good in the third quarter and hopefully good in the fourth quarter and end with a good year,” Ryan said.

The city made its final payment at the beginning of 2024 on an $11.9 million loan it took out in 2005 for its portion of the center’s construction cost.

Most of the $45 million in construction expenses were covered by $26.8 million in federal grants.

The city repaid the loan and interest from operating surpluses, the admission tax and property taxes the city receives that are specifically meant for its debt service payments.

No longer in debt, the center started last year making infrastructure improvements including replacing a large portion of its original roof.

The city also borrowed $4 million in 2018 from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to pay for the $8 million amphitheater and park. The city is repaying that loan over 20 years.

The other $4 million came from naming-rights deals.

First-quarter finances for

Covelli Centre

Here are the first- quarter operating losses and surpluses for the Youngstown-owned Covelli Centre, Youngstown Foundation Amphitheatre and Wean Park. The center opened in October 2005 while the amphitheater opened in June 2019 and the park later in 2019. The amphitheater and park don’t hold events during the first three months of the year.

2006: $324,952 loss

2007: $27,440 surplus

2008: $30,264 loss

2009: $242,340 surplus

2010: $1,991 surplus

2011: $89,529 surplus

2012: $59,144 surplus

2013: $60,248 surplus

2014: $382,016 surplus

2015: $261,358 surplus

2016: $306,858 surplus

2017: $100,482 surplus

2018: $194,702 surplus

2019: $229,386 surplus

2020: $99,815 surplus

2021: $4,047 surplus

2022: $92,731 surplus

2023: $382,334 surplus

2024: $233,014 surplus

2025: $144,689 surplus

Source:

Covelli officials