First Arena

[KarenK 512]

I don't know why I feel like there is something coming up or going to happen with something? 

This post by the executive just suddenly appearing for sake of "transparency" feels like someone trying to cover their butt or something.  Not that the CCIDA or any of them have ever been transparent, neither has the executive in any way.

I just have a feeling that something is up.

[Adam 545]

4 hours ago, Chris said:

Margeson mentioned private ownership and that right there is what's needed. With no interference and/or onjection of money by the county in any way, shape or form. 

except any past offers have been soundly rejected, or nit-picked until backed out of

 

[Adam 545]

march IDA minutes: "There was $15,731 in total income. Total
expenses were 321,482. Net income was a negative $305,751.00. On the profit and loss for January
through March 2024 total income was $155,325.00. Total expenses were $768,926 and total net income
was a negative $613,600. We have $1,816,081 cash on hand. Mr. Margeson commented that
approximately $600,000 are hockey expenses. He hopes to make changes in the coming year to reduce
that amount. Mr. Keenan commented that the amount of spending needs to be addressed. We need a
cash flow statement/projection for the IDA. Mr. Margeson further commented that the IDA is for
business development. We need to get back to expanding business opportunities that we may be
overlooking. We need to be aware of opportunities out there. " Perhaps concentrating so much on the arena is blinding them to other opportunities? also if one reads the minutes, as the year progresses, the negative balances further increase while cash on hand steadily dwindles

[Adam 545]

further, Mr. Margeson was adamant that they only used Exec session once....looking in the minutes, there are 3 between Jan 24 and Aug 24. here is the notes pertaining to it:

"Mr. Margeson provided a brief overview of the board’s discussion. There is consideration of providing a
new hockey league at the arena. We have a local businessman, Mr. Marc Stemerman, who is involved
in this particular process. Marc has made a significant investment in the community and in the team
and I think it is going to be a tremendous asset to our community. A couple things about this particular
operation; it is our fiduciary responsibility to continue financially to look at the arena. This particular
deal will cost approximately 50% less out of pocket for the hockey structure. We will continue to offer
hockey in the arena. The form of hockey will be the North American League. This is a league that
actually brings college students into the D-1 division and additionally, effective today, there’s been over
50 participants in the NAHL League that have gone to the NHL. We are looking at a different style of
hockey. These are the folks that are the future hockey players coming from Elmira and going onto D-1
colleges and into the NHL. I feel it’s a very strong financial decision we needed to make to keep hockey
in Elmira. I think it will be a real positive impact to the community having a significant business owner
involved in this process. I would like to publicly thank Marc Stemerman for getting involved."

1. this seems to be in direct contradiction to the reason for going into Exec session...what monies were discussed/promised since public monies are being directed to the arena?

2. Exec session details are not supposed to be discussed outside of the session, so it seems( i could be mistaken) that Mr. Margeson providing even the synopsis he did either violates the NYS meeting Laws, OR more likely, shows that the exec session for this discussion was mis-used.

3. WHY the strict fous on hockey in ANY form for so many years? it seems a complete 180 from the bolded quote from him in my previous post.

Edited January 10 by Adam

[Adam 545]

June 2024:

Joe Roman: "Expenses are mostly for the arena"

"Net income for June was a negative $151,046.28. We have $1.7 million cash on hand."

" Mr. Roman commented that things happen quickly at the arena
and bills over the agreed upon amount sometimes need to be done prior to board approval." quite concerning on many levels

"Mr. Collins commented that the City’s
Code Enforcement Officer attempted to inspect the arena with previous tenants and was told to
not come in the building." UMMM, maybe THIS was a red flag for those in charge of the building to get involved, maybe so much damage and alleged theft could have been prevented? yet there was no one held accountable to date.

"July Payroll/Payables: This expense for $85,531.00 is related to payroll, payroll taxes, union, IC,
Britt Floyd and debit card purchases. There is not a lot happening in the summer at the arena."  seems to contradict recent claims....

[Adam 545]

August:

"Mr. Margeson and Bob Kramarik have been working with LECOM on naming rights. LECOM has agreed to a five year
contract for $500,000. LECOM will have 400-500 students attending school here. Mr. Margeson hopes it
will bring the community together. Cash remaining is $1.4 million."

 

[Adam 545]

Sept:

"Total income was $7,839.87.
Expenses were $163,085.07 with a net loss of $155,245.20. Year to date total income is $699,109.93 and
Net Income through August is a negative $1,099,877.76. Cash on hand is $1,305,263.92."

 

[Adam 545]

Oct 2024:

"Utility expenses at the arena are approximately $20,000 per month."

"We have payments for arena insurance, Stemerman Sports and MRB Group. We have a net loss of $21,000.
Current assets are $1.2 million, down from approximately $3 million."

"Ratification of Check: J. Roman discussed the operational expenses for $39,000 that needed to be
covered at the arena for the Price is Right show and other items, which needs to be ratified."

"Budget: Mr. Roman reviewed the 2025 budget with the board. We estimated agency income at
$500,000 as we never know how many projects there are going to be each year. This year we exceeded
the $500,000 since 3 Sisters Solar Farm closed recently. The CVS Bond payment will be gone after 2025,
leaving an approximately $650,000 hole in the IDA’s budget."

Mr stemerman is mentioned quite a bit but i cannot seem to find just how much he is being paid

[Adam 545]

November 2024:

"Net income is down $423,000. We are working with
the County Executive on receiving the $500,000 in ARP funds that were approved. The County Legislature
provided information to the County Executive last week. The funds won’t solve the arena’s problems, but
it will help accommodate expenses. Ms. O’Brien asked about the auto expense for the IDA. The IDA
vehicle lease is a benefit Mr. Roman receives with his position. She said the Steuben County IDA put more
money in the budget for auto expenses so staff can travel for economic development projects."

"Old Business
Check Ratification: Mr. Roman discussed a check ratification for $108,799 to
cover three payroll periods, vendors and credit card payments for the arena."

interesting that robbing peter to pay some interest to Paul continues, and they KNOW its not improving anything, but hey lets pile on by providing transport for Mr. Roman, and perhaps few more folks on the taxpayer's dime!

[KarenK 512]

7 hours ago, Adam said:

 

interesting that robbing peter to pay some interest to Paul continues, and they KNOW its not improving anything, but hey lets pile on by providing transport for Mr. Roman, and perhaps few more folks on the taxpayer's dime!

The IDA is a separate entity and that is what Mr Roman gets the car for.  When the arena is sold the IDA remains along with Mr Romans car which is included as part of the job.

[Adam 545]

3 hours ago, KarenK said:

The IDA is a separate entity and that is what Mr Roman gets the car for.  When the arena is sold the IDA remains along with Mr Romans car which is included as part of the job.

IF would be more accurate descriptor, i understand the set up of the entity but they are still funded through monies that come from the taxpayers of the county and the way their account is dwindling, and continuous negative net-income all the while pouring marge sums int o the proven quagmire that is the arena which distracts from other possible/better ways of investing int he area you would think providing one vehicle and looking to possibly provide for more employees would NOT be a smart idea. in fact it gives the impression they feel the funding comes from an ever-full teet so why be judicious with it

[Hal 567]

So , can I assume all the involved “ Agencies “ are Not funded by County Taxpayers ?! And is it not a conflict of interest for the same individuals to sit on these seemingly Separate Entities  ? And just how many more of these acronymic shills do these folks have tucked away to use as needed ? 
Thank you for the deep dive Adam ! 

[KarenK 512]

4 hours ago, Adam said:

IF would be more accurate descriptor, i understand the set up of the entity but they are still funded through monies that come from the taxpayers of the county and the way their account is dwindling, and continuous negative net-income all the while pouring marge sums int o the proven quagmire that is the arena which distracts from other possible/better ways of investing int he area you would think providing one vehicle and looking to possibly provide for more employees would NOT be a smart idea. in fact it gives the impression they feel the funding comes from an ever-full teet so why be judicious with it

The IDA is not fully funded by the county. The get some money as a line item just like a whole lot of other people, places and things in the county.

The CCIDA is a public benefit corporation, so it is actually a "for profit" corporation.

[MsKreed 1,621]

Besides CCC, IDA gets more funding than most other “community investments” that the county contributes tax money to. In addition to the $1.3 million in ARP funds....they’ve also been burning through $200k/yr Casella and room tax for a decade.

From my perspective, there is no comparison to funding entities that provide things that can be considered community service (like Catholic Charities, CCC or museums/Tanglewood) as opposed to a purely commercial entertainment venue.

And I’m sick of the claim that we need to prop up the Arena because youth hockey is supposedly some vital human right that will give poor and disadvantaged kids a worthwhile pastime and all the values of being on a “team”.

Ya know what else is a healthy youth activity that fosters team spirit? And doesn’t require the upkeep of an ice plant? And is also more inclusive for kids at all levels of athletic ability?

Bowling!

And when the public no longer had enough “demand” for bowling no one bailed out the bowling alleys in the county. So three out of the four bowling centers Chemung County just went bust when there wasn't enough interest to pay their own bills (and taxes).  All the people who supported bowling as a worthwhile youth activity were a clear minority and they were simply S-O-L.

 

Sell the Arena to someone with no strings and no “incentives” (aka artificial ‘revenue’ stream) and put it back on the tax rolls. Tag Rhodes has proven to be able to operate an entertainment venue successfully....while adding to the tax base instead of draining from it. None of the business “experts” who’ve leached off the Arena for 24 years can say the same.

 

Once it’s gone, perhaps we can put some investment into the Fairgrounds as a Community Center.  I’d bet they could do a lot more to bring in visitors and boost local economy with a fraction of the Casella and room tax that the Arena has been bleeding from the County.

[Chris 3,379]

Every time I hear “there’s nothing for kids to do” I want to vomit. There are literally dozens of youth sports leagues out there that don’t rely on taxpayer funding like youth hockey does around here.

This friggin building, and more specifically hockey, has been crammed down our throats for 25 years now.

It’s not a hockey town, it never was a hockey town, and you’re not going to force or spend it into being a hockey town. Get it through your goddamned heads!

[Adam 545]

9 hours ago, KarenK said:

The IDA is not fully funded by the county. The get some money as a line item just like a whole lot of other people, places and things in the county.

"Some" is being bit generous given how the current Chair seems to have no qualms about spending each and every last penny that can be squeezed, and im quite sure other entities that dont get as much, have and are doing much more for the community.

9 hours ago, KarenK said:

The CCIDA is a public benefit corporation, so it is actually a "for profit" corporation.

In that case they should be getting ZERO taxpayers' dollars as no other for profit should. And if you look at the minutes i posted, theyre doing a piss-poor job of profiting anywhere, another reason they shouldnt be trusted with any more public monies

[MsKreed 1,621]

23 hours ago, Chris said:

Every time I hear “there’s nothing for kids to do” I want to vomit. There are literally dozens of youth sports leagues out there that don’t rely on taxpayer funding like youth hockey does around here.

This friggin building, and more specifically hockey, has been crammed down our throats for 25 years now.

It’s not a hockey town, it never was a hockey town, and you’re not going to force or spend it into being a hockey town. Get it through your goddamned heads!

This. 110%

It's insulting for community "leaders" to dictate what youth activities they decide to prioritize with public fund/support. 

Personally,  I've never even been big on school districts funding sports programs.  It's really not fair for parents who pay 100% out of pocket to have kids in scouts or gymnastics or bowling or dance to subsidize other kids who happen to have interest in other activities like basketball or football.

At least school boards allow voters to weigh in on school sports. How TF does the IDA get off forcing anyone to subsidize even a dollar of their "chosen" sport? Let alone thousands of dollars a month?

Edited Sunday at 01:37 AM by MsKreed