How much life is left in aging Pensacola Bay Center? Answer will determine its future.

The Pensacola Bay Center, Escambia County’s main concert and event arena, turns 40 in 2025 and not a lot has been done to update the facility over the past four decades.

Inside and out, it remains much the same as it was when the rock band KISS first took the stage after the venue opened in 1985.

In recent years, though, the Bay Center has gotten some much needed updates and improvements, like new seats, a new sound system, and the biggest upgrade, a new HVAC system.

To determine how much more the county wants to spend on the Bay Center besides routine capital improvements, Escambia County is currently conducting a facility conditions study. The results will be used to develop a strategic plan for the future of the building.

“It'll try to answer the question, are the bones good? What are the bones? What are the systems? Are they outdated? What are they compared to other markets?” explained Pensacola Bay Center General Manager Michael Capps.

Planning for future: $3 million price tag to remove I-110 off-ramp could limit future of Pensacola Bay Center

COVID help: Pensacola Bay Center to receive $100,000 from county to stay open for at least a month

“It just gives you a snapshot of what the building is right now, and then part of that study is to give us an assessment of what needs to be done or should be done,” Capps continued. “Then the last piece are some conceptual ideas of what it could be and then you get into design concepts. Is it reimagining the space to develop more of an entertainment core or is it just to redevelop the building? What does that look like?”

Escambia County leaders will ultimately answer those questions based on the results of the study.

How is Pensacola Bay Center doing?

Pensacola Bay Center has traditionally not been a revenue generator for Escambia County and usually loses money each year.

According to Escambia County’s proposed 2023-2024 budget, the county has spent about $5 million to $7.5 million on operating expenses for the facility each year since 2018.

So far this year, operating expenses have been just under $4 million.

The Bay Center struggled so much during COVID the facility lost half its revenue and in 2021 had to get an extra $100,000 from the county to keep the doors open for the rest of the year.

Capps said the facility has rebounded since COVID and revenues are moving in the right direction thanks to tenants like the Ice Flyers.

This year is the team’s 15th anniversary in Pensacola and the team’s games post-COVID shutdowns have brought in record breaking crowds. The past hockey season averaged about 3,500 people a game.

“It’s been a great relationship developed over many years,” Ice Flyers owner Greg Harris said about his partnership with Pensacola Bay Center management. “It's how can we collaborate together and work together to be able to further impact with the product that we're providing on the ice but also our reach and create an even greater economic impact for downtown Pensacola and Escambia County.”

Future of Pensacola Bay Center

Despite the operating expenses, county leaders say Pensacola Bay Center provides a much-needed venue space for community events, like hockey games and everything from Mardi Gras balls and Pensacon to concerts, expos and school graduations.

Earlier this year county officials wanted to close the Interstate 110 Gregory Street off-ramp that loops on the backside of the facility until the Florida Department of Transportation said it would cost more than $3 million to remove it.

In case you missed it: What happened to the proposals to replace the Pensacola Bay Center? Are they still viable?

The hefty price tag may have killed the idea for now, and it sparked a conversation among commissioners about how much money is worth investing in the facility’s future, and whether it’s better to rehabilitate Pensacola Bay Center or replace it.

The study now underway may help the county answer those questions.

“We're continuing to look at everything that we can while we're undergoing the facility condition assessment to determine what we (the county) do with the building,” said Capps. “Is it fix a few things here or there, or replace a few things here or there, or do you build a brand-new building? That's what all this study is going to do. Instead of putting a ton of money into an existing building, we want to determine what we're going to do before we do that. While we're doing that though, we are doing little things.”

Some of the improvements management is making in the meantime include new LED lighting throughout the building, along with new paint, flooring and furniture in the dressing rooms and some of the conference rooms.

They’ve also added video boards to enhance the fan experience at games, concerts and other events and rebranded the concession stands to include a wider variety of choices including plant-based options and items with a variety of price points.

Escambia County also recently approved $72,000 to make repairs to the ice plant, the equipment under the floor that helps create ice for the hockey games.

The facility conditions study is expected to be finished by September. The results will become public after they are presented to county commissioners.

“It's coming back with what we were expecting and then some,” said Capps. “This is just another step or level of verification of, 'Hey, this is what we have, and if we want to get to wherever we want to get down the road, this is what we're going to need to do.’”

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Pensacola Bay Center updated as Escambia County studies options