San Diego State University wants its proposed 35,000-capacity stadium in Mission Valley to be a beacon for high-profile events, not just college football games, and it expects to enlist a premier management company to give the venue name recognition on a national scale.
Earlier this month, the institution’s athletics department published a request for proposals to “manage, operate, maintain and market” the $250 million stadium it plans to build on land still owned by the city of San Diego. The solicitation also notes that bidders will need to handle operations of SDCCU Stadium once the university takes the dated facility over from the city.
The hope is to land an outfit that can aggressively market both venues so that they’re booked and generating revenue all year, said John David Wicker, who is SDSU’s director of athletics.
“We want them to help schedule the building,” he said. “As we put a shovel in the ground, we’ll go out and start booking events. We’ll be bidding on NCAA championships.”
The athletics executive believes the venue is suited for college soccer, lacrosse and football championship games, although the latter would likely be limited to the lower subdivision of Division 1 schools given the stadium’s seating capacity.
The operations agreement, as described in the procurement document, would have a third-party running everything, including day-to-day stadium operations, security, concessions, marketing efforts and accounting. The firm will also be tasked with providing direction on stadium design elements based on prior experience. And candidates will need to be versed in digital ticketing, Wicker said.
Bids for a maximum 13-year contract are due next month, and the university hopes to execute a
deal in December.
The university is currently forecasting operational expenses between $3.6 million $3.8 million per year when the stadium opens. The number includes payment to a capital fund to offset future needs and excludes expenses tied to a specific event as those are paid through the revenues collected from that event, Wicker said.
As it stands, the city of San Diego expects to lose an estimated $5.6 million on operations of the existing SDCCU Stadium in fiscal 2020, according to a report issued last year by the Office of the Independent Budget Analyst.
The request for proposals comes as the university is working to buy 132 city-owned acres of land in Mission Valley for a stadium, river park and an education-oriented innovation center. In November, voters approved a citizens’ initiative that directed the city to negotiate with SDSU for the sale of the prime real estate. Although talks are ongoing, the university has charged ahead with its environmental impact report and multiple project contracts, including awards to Gensler and Clark Construction Group for design and construction of the stadium.
The university’s fast maneuvering is part of a highly orchestrated game plan to buy the land early next year and construct the new stadium in time for the 2022 NCAA football season. There are still potential hurdles. For instance, city officials have indicated that San Diego needs a certified environmental impact report in place before it can finalize deal terms, which could delay progress.
The study was released earlier this month in draft form and considers the effects of the university’s proposed satellite campus master plan at build out in 2037. The report is being circulated for a 60-day public review and comment period that ends on Oct. 3.
