While they bring thousands of visitors to their respective communities, West Virginia’s civic centers are not moneymakers. Not unlike similar facilities throughout the country, managers at WesBanco Arena in Wheeling, the Charleston Civic Center, Big Sandy Superstore Arena in Huntington, and the Beckley-Raleigh County Convention Center said their operations depend on government subsidies.

Denny Magruder has managed WesBanco Arena since 1986. The facility has an annual operating budget of $1.9 million, including $200,000 in hotel-motel tax revenue from Wheeling.

“We use that for our capital improvement projects,” Magruder said. “This is a break-even operation. We need to be flexible, roll with the industry and keep our head above water.”

During the past decade, he said, the arena has had an average of 460,000 patrons per year.

John Robertson has been affiliated with the Charleston Civic Center since 1978 and has been the facility manager since 1983. He said the venue adds to the quality of life in a community.

“A civic center such as ours brings enlightenment, entertainment and education to the community,” he said. “It provides exposure to a variety of cultural and entertainment activities that the community may not otherwise have the opportunity to enjoy.”

Robertson said 1 million people visit the Civic Center annually.

“With the number of events and the size of our facility, we have the ability to bring in outside dollars that contribute significantly to the local economy,” he said.

The Civic Center receives a $400,000 annual subsidy from Charleston.

Big Sandy Superstore Arena has seen the ups and downs of the industry within the past two years, according to General Manager A.J. Boleski.

“It has been a tough year this year,” he said, noting a $500,000 allocation needed from the city of Huntington. “We were coming off of our best year.”

Boleski said the facility had a $57,000 deficit in 2007-08, but it typically requires $200,000 or more per year to reach the break-even point.

“Even though, on paper, it loses money, the bonuses outweigh that when you take into account everything that it provides to the city,” he added.

Operating in a former armory, the Beckley-Raleigh County Convention Center is a nonprofit organization owned in equal shares by the city of Beckley, The Raleigh County Commission and The Raleigh County Board of Education. Operating on an annual budget of $1.2 million, Manager Andrea Akers said the facility had a $40,000 shortfall during its most recent fiscal year.

The facilities have many similarities in their ongoing effort to turn fiscal red to black. They all offer their own catering service for meetings, dinners and receptions. Three of them also manage other in-town venues — Capitol Theater in Wheeling, Municipal Auditorium in Charleston and Harris Riverfront Park in Huntington. At the same time, each facility has its unique community niche.

Wheeling

WesBanco Arena, with a 10-year naming agreement signed in 2003, is much ado about hockey. With a 36-game regular season home schedule in addition to preseason exhibition and post-season playoffs, the Wheeling Nailers of the East Coast Hockey League are committed to more than 40 events.

Magruder said fans have stuck with the team through three changes in ownership during 17 seasons.

“That speaks for our relationship,” he said. “Wheeling is one of the smallest markets in the league.”

In addition to the minor league team, the arena also is home ice for 13 scholastic and amateur teams.

The arena also has built a strong relationship with the 48-school Ohio Valley Athletic Conference. Wheeling is the site for the league’s wrestling tournament and the permanent home for the OVAC Museum and Hall of Fame.

Sporting events such as hockey have helped offset lost business as the music concert business declines.

“There just aren’t as many touring bands as we had in the ’80s,” he said, “and several of the bands that are touring have cut back from 100-plus dates to 40 dates.”

The arena has 11 full-time employees and about 300 part-time workers.

Charleston

With a 13,500-seat coliseum, the Charleston Civic Center is the largest facility of its type in West Virginia. The original building was constructed in 1959 at a cost of $3 million. There have been several additions, including a $19 million expansion in 1978 and a $9 million project in 2000.

The biggest change in recent years has come from the music industry, according to Robertson. Concert dates were reduced significantly as they evolved into expensive productions controlled by a relatively small group of major promoters.

“Ticket prices have gone from $15 in the ’80s to $60 now,” he said. “Now people are more likely to choose one or two concerts per year instead of seven or eight.”

The Civic Center staff of 31 full-time workers also manages the nearby Charleston Municipal Auditorium. Built in 1939, the 3,400-seat theater has hosted cultural events and performances by Bob Hope, Ray Charles and Billy Joel.

Charleston also is home to the Clay Center for the Arts & Sciences, which was constructed in 2003 as a venue for performing arts, visual arts and sciences. The entertainment focal point is the Maier Foundation Performance Hall, which serves as the home of the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra along with other concerts and theatrical performances with seating for 1,883. The adjacent Walker Theater seats 200.

Huntington

Unlike the other Mountain State venues, the Big Sandy Superstore Arena is managed by SMG rather than city employees. Philadelphia-based SMG has contracts with more than 200 facilities around the country, including the Louisiana Superdome and Chicago’s Soldier Field.

Boleski said the corporate connection has its advantages, including booking performances.

The facility features a 7,600-seat arena and the Huntington Hall of Fame. With its proximity to Marshall University, Boleski said a strong demand for concerts in Huntington still exists.

“That’s been our bread and butter,” he said. “The rock’n’roll shows cater to the college crowd.”

The arena has 12 full-time employees and more than 100 part-timers. Big Sandy Superstores has the naming rights for the building through 2012 with the possibility of a five-year extension at the conclusion of the contract.

Huntington is also the home of the Cabell County Veterans Memorial Field House, now owned by the Greater Huntington Parks & Recreation District. Once the home of Marshall University basketball, it still is used for high school basketball games, concerts and craft and trade shows.

“Fifty-two percent of our business comes from nonprofit groups,” said Director Don Ewanus.

Beckley

Basketball is to Beckley what hockey is to Wheeling. The Raleigh County Convention Center is the 4,000-seat home court of the West Virginia Blazers, a franchise of the minor league American Basketball Association, as well as teams from Mountain State University and Woodrow Wilson High School. It also is home to the West Virginia Coal Classic.

The facility, which includes six meeting rooms for conferences and other events, fills around the basketball schedule with trade shows and concerts.

“We have a home show every year, and the Chamber of Commerce’s Arts & Crafts Fair always draws a big crowd,” said Akers. “We’re always trying to improve the facilities.”

The convention center has 49 full- and part-time workers.

Other armories in West Virginia are used for public events. The Nathan Goff Armory in Clarksburg, the Woody Williams Marion County Armory in Fairmont and the Brushfork Armory near Bluefield are among the largest facilities.

Williamson

Built in 1950, the Williamson Field House is operated by Williamson Park Board. The facility has a seating capacity of 3,600 and is the home venue for Williamson High School basketball and other sporting events.

New Facilities

Built in 2005, the newest facility in the state is the Summersville Arena and Conference Center. The West Virginia Army National Guard constructed it with financial assistance from the city of Summersville and the Nicholas County Commission. Land for the project was donated by the James H. Ferguson family.

The 73,000-square-foot facility has a 2,000-seat arena that can accommodate 2,400 people for concerts.

Ground was broken in September on a new military facility in Jackson County that will consolidate operations currently in Ripley, Spencer and Huntington. The Jackson County Commission hopes a 2,000-seat hall will be included in funding for the project along the Ohio River at Millwood.

Wood County officials also are endorsing a proposed new armory-civic center at a Boreman Hill development site overlooking Parkersburg.

The Chuck Mathena Center is a new entertainment and conference center in Princeton. A $12 million project with a full-time staff of three, the facility opened in 2008 and has hosted performances by such stars as Kathy Mattea, Lee Greenwood and Ricky Skaggs.