U.S. Cellular Center making noise in first year of business

With careful planning and strategically closed doors, visitors to the new anchor complex in downtown Cedar Rapids earlier this month could hear the dulcet tones of a sold-out Mannheim Steamroller Christmas concert in the U.S. Cellular Center Arena and rap giant Pitbull rocking the adjacent convention center for GoDaddy's holiday party.

But neither audience could hear the other performance.

That's just one of the success stories for a system that's working and putting Cedar Rapids back on the map for big-time events.

Roll the calendar back a little farther, and on Sept. 20, more than 8,000 heavy metal fans at the sold-out Five Finger Death Punch concert coexisted silently with a Coe College homecoming event in the convention center and a wedding dance in the hotel.

'The building is designed to really effectively use every space at the same time. We've been successful in doing that multiple times throughout the year,” said Sharon Cummins, executive director for VenuWorks in Cedar Rapids, which manages the arena.

The renovated space at 370 First Ave. NE reopened with Lady Antebellum on June 1, 2013, but Cummins said she considers December to be the end of the first year, since it marks the first full calendar year of being back with arena staples, from concerts and Cirque du Soleil to state high school volleyball tournaments.

Six events were sold out in 2014: the Cedar Rapids Titans indoor football team's home opener on Feb. 15, WWE WrestleMania on March 1, Boston's classic rock concert Aug. 28, the four-band lineup Sept. 20 headlined by Five Finger Death Punch, the Minnesota Timberwolves basketball game on Oct. 17, and Mannheim Steamroller on Dec. 6.

Sellouts are not only determined by ticket sales, but by audience configurations. Maximum capacity is 9,000 for a general admission concert where audience members stand shoulder-to-shoulder on the floor and fill every seat. That's seldom the case, since most concerts have a stage, speakers and backdrops that would block views in the seats behind the bands. Reserved-seat sellouts can go as high as 7,600, depending on the number of chairs set up on the floor and the balcony seats that can't be used because of viewing obstacles.

Events that don't sell out can still be lucrative. An Oct. 29 appearance by Long Island Medium Theresa Caputo joined the Timberwolves and Five Finger Death Punch as the year's top one-night dollar draws, each generating about $250,000 in gross ticket sales.

'Cedar Rapids really has embraced the U.S. Cellular Center coming back to life and the new life it has,” Cummins said. 'We're seeing a lot of strong support in all types of events. ...

When the arena opened in 1979, people could buy a concert ticket for $15.”

Those days are done, but even with today's higher prices - which can skirt or top $100 - people are still buying. Cummins said that 'has enabled us to really go after those top-line entertainers.”

'The success of the shows has created interest in the industry,” said Mike Silva, assistant executive director for VenuWorks in Cedar Rapids. 'The success with Justin Moore brought us Miranda Lambert very quickly down the road, and Brad Paisley. The same with Five Finger - it's created a lot of interest in the rock market in playing Cedar Rapids. As we continue to grow that success, it's very quickly putting Cedar Rapids on the map.

'If we continue to do this well, we'll be on the tips on everyone's tongues,” he said. 'It's a great time to be seeing shows here at the U.S. Cellular Center.”

With strong followings already established in the country, rock, classic rock and hard rock/heavy metal realms, Silva would like to court programming for the college crowd in the coming years. He calls it an untapped market, considering how many students attend Eastern Iowa schools.

'That's next on our list,” he said.