USHL Tri-City Storm

Storm ownership changes hands

Published on May 3, 2006 under United States Hockey League (USHL)
Tri-City Storm News Release


KEARNEY - At a press conference held today at the Kearney Event Center it was announced that the ownership of the Tri-City Storm has changed. The Kearney Event Center has purchased the team from Omaha businessman Ted Baer and his family who brought the team to central Nebraska in 2000.

The details of the agreement, which were not released, call for KEC to assume full ownership of the hockey team. Joel Wiens is president of First Tier Capital Corporation, owner of the Kearney Event Center. The USHL board of governors approved Tuesday the transfer of ownership from Baer to Wiens contingent upon the filing of legal documents required by the league.

Wiens has been the sole owner of the Kearney Event Center since acquiring the building in August of 2004.

"By acquiring the Storm hockey club and merging the two entities we should have a more efficient operation and hopefully improve our overall bottom line profitability," Wiens said. "Every step in this process was made with central Nebraskans in mind. We hope to have secured the Event Center and Storm Hockey as entertainment outlets for years to come."

For Kearney native Greg Shea, who will remain the Storm's vice president of operations, the change presents a unique opportunity for both properties involved.

"We've had the pleasure of working with Geof Cook and his staff in a tenant to landlord relationship and embrace this awesome opportunity to work as one larger organization to bring greater value to the Storm Hockey experience and the overall Kearney Event Center entertainment package," Shea said.

Regarding personnel involved at the Event Center and Storm Hockey, both will remain in place. Shea and Cook, the Event Center's general manager since 2004, will work together to develop and expand both Storm Hockey and the Kearney Event Center's operations.

"We are excited to begin working as one entity as opposed to two," said Cook. "In the long run our staffs, partners and also Storm fans will see benefits from this."

Wiens, who is currently the president of the Event Center, says that the ownership structure for the Event Center could see small changes in the near future.

"We do intend to structure the Event Center ownership to include our management as part of the ownership package to give a local vested flavor to the Event Center," said Wiens.

With the ownership changing as of May 1, Shea says the Storm will remain focused on business as usual. Season ticket renewals along with numerous marketing and promotions projects will begin taking place in the coming weeks. The Storm, who has conducted business in north Kearney for six years, does plan on relocating to the Event Center in the near future.

"One of the first orders of business is to put in motion the annual season ticket renewal campaign," Shea said. "The Storm season ticket database of customers is the core of the team's success and this transaction should provide even greater opportunities to strengthen their value and investment in their team."

Shea also noted that season ticket prices and single game prices will remain the same for the 2006-07 season.

The Storm, a member of the United States Hockey League, has played hockey in central Nebraska since 2000 when Baer purchased and relocated the Twin City Vulcans to Kearney. In the six years that have followed over 800,000 fans have watched Storm Hockey at the Kearney Event Center.

"The USHL wouldn't be where it is today without the commitment and enthusiasm of Ted Baer and his family," said USHL president Gino Gasparini. "His contributions to both Nebraska hockey and our league over the past two decades have played an integral role in the USHL's growth as the premier junior league in the country."

Baer's hockey organization, which was named the USHL's Organization of the Year in 2001 and 2004, was also recognized in March as the Kearney Area Chamber of Commerce's 2005 Small Business of the Year for the organization's contributions to the Kearney area and central Nebraska.

"None of this would have been possible without the vision and resources that the Baer family provided as far back as 1996. Ted Baer and his family will be sorely missed in the junior hockey world, but the product they've helped establish will last long into the future," Shea said.

The Kearney Event Center opened its doors on Nov. 18 of 2000 with the Storm's first home game. In the past five and a half years nearly two million entertainment seekers have walked through the Event Center's doors, creating a multi-million dollar annual economic impact to the Kearney area. With the Storm as the building's main tenant, the Event Center has also hosted numerous other events including Diesel football, Cranes basketball, concerts, Disney on Ice, Larry the Cable Guy and an annual summer fireworks show.

"I think this proves how important we think this organization is to this area and to the success of the Event Center," Cook said. "Securing the future of the Storm is a step toward securing our future as an entertainment hub for central Nebraska."

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United States Hockey League Stories from May 3, 2006


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