EBENSBURG - Some big-time arena operators have taken an interest in the Cambria County War Memorial Arena.
Cambria County commissioners are in the earliest stages of reviewing four management proposals, keeping some details close to their vests, but it appears a few of the suitors have eye-catching track records.
One hopeful, Philadelphia-based SMG Entertainment, manages Pittsburgh's Mellon Arena and dozens of other facilities that host major and minor league teams.
Another, Rhode Island-based RG Sport & Entertainment, also runs a long list of arenas, including a new 7,000-seat home to an East Coast Hockey League club.
There also are two companies with local ties: Spin Wilde, an apparent upstart with a Windber address, and Roustan United Arena Solutions, an internationally known company with an office in Richland.
Roustan manages the region's ECHL team, the Johnstown Chiefs, which is the arena's main draw.
At this point, commissioners have separately skimmed the proposals but have not yet met collectively to review them further.
''It's still very early at this point; there's not much to say,'' President Commissioner P.J. Stevens said.
The county sought proposals after a study recommended privatizing the 3,900-seat arena, saying the facility was underutilized. The study urged action to stabilize finances and keep the Chiefs as a tenant.
Roustan has expressed interest in buying the Chiefs. The franchise has been on shaky ground in recent years.
Stevens acknowledged that the RG Sport group also said they had ''the potential'' to bring an ECHL team with them. Stevens would not elaborate.
A company Web site profile shows RG is a wholly owned subsidiary of RG Properties, which manages the newly built Save-On-Foods Arena in British Columbia and is the corporate owner of the ECHL Victoria Salmon Kings.
Stevens said all options, including full management and finding a third party to work with the War Memorial Authority on some services, remain on the table.
The board will discuss plans with the authority, a county-appointed board that runs the facility, and the Greater Johnstown Partnership before making a final decision, Stevens said.
Even if the proposals yield a new solution or War Memorial manager, negotiations with the top party also would take time, he noted. The county's 2009 budget, which still is being crunched, is currently the commissioners' top priority and must be in place by year's end.
Mirror Staff Writer David Hurst is at 946-7457.
