By Eric Curl
May 8, 2025 – After commencing operations in February 2022, Enmarket Arena’s management company reported revenues increased about 34 percent in 2024, its second full year of operations.
The Oak View Group (OVG) reported revenues increased from almost $19 million in 2023 to more than $25 million in 2024, according to the latest independent auditor’s report obtained by Savannah Agenda via an open-records request. The company also reported earning about $2 million in revenue over expenses, up from about $1.2 million in 2023.
The city earned $648,214 as a result of the revenue-sharing component, up from $134,443. A portion of that, $223,951, is comprised of net parking income – which is 75 percent of the total net parking income, per the terms of the agreement. The amount increased from $105,326 reported in 2023.
The audit report by Columbia, SC-based accounting firm Scott and Company is required to be submitted by May 1 each year. It comes as the city council is scheduled to consider $14 million in additional expenses, on top of $15 million already spent, for a 2,000-space parking lot to serve the arena. The budget amendment included on Thursday’s meeting agenda is needed to remediate the contaminated site and complete the surface lot, according to officials. The expenses are proposed to be paid for using $7.4 million from the general fund and $6.6 million for the parking fund.
The budget amendment was called out on Sunday by Alderman Nick Palumbo, who said in a Facebook post that the “important item buried at the end” of the meeting’s agenda “needs attention.”
“I’ve held my nose on this item so far, convinced myself this was self-funding from parking fees,” Palumbo said. “But the latest ask would take $millions from the general fund that should be used for mobility solutions, housing, or public safety.”
In another post on Wednesday, Palumbo said he has formally requested that the council table the funding request until a proper workshop is held to explore more cost-effective options.
Read Thursday’s Savannah City Council Agenda>
The city contract with OVG in 2019 to manage the activities and operations including rental of the space, advertising, promotions, marketing, event management, public relations, and support services of the arena located in Savannah, Georgia. The agreement between OVG and the city is for ten operating years commencing on the first event at the arena.
Under the terms of the agreement, OVG pays all operating expenses, in addition to a flat rent payment and the revenue share to the city. The flat rent payment for 2024 amounted to $50,000, with that rate scheduled to increase to $100,000 in 2026 and $200,000 after 2029.
The latest report for 2024 is a turnaround for the venue, after event-related revenue in 2023 decreased from almost $14.7 million in 2022, which was not a full 12 months, to almost $11.6 million in 2023, as previously reported.
The budget amendments being considered Thursday also includes $1.2 million for site planning as well as equity and public engagement for the redevelopment of the Civic Center. The Enmarket Arena was built to replace the Civic Center and the Martin Luther King Jr. Arena within it, but the council has since decided to preserve the Johnny Mercer Theatre on its north end.
While not named as a defendant, the venue management company was described as a colluder in an ongoing lawsuit one year ago that the US Dept. of Justice brought against Live Nation and Ticketmaster for alleged anti-competitive conduct. The arena is not currently involved in any legal proceedings that could be expected to have adverse effects on the operations, according to the audit report.
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