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By Paula Collucci
Business to Business
Initial efforts have already begun at Fort Borst Park in Centralia, just days after the Lewis County Public Facilities District (PFD) announced it would invest more than $5 million into the Lewis County Event Center proposed by Thorbecke’s Fitness Centers owner Dale Pullin.
The decision is at the center of a regional debate about whether a Napavine equestrian center or the $12 million Centralia event center would’ve been a better choice for the PFD.
True to its name, however, the Lewis County Events Center will not just fill seats for sporting events. It will also be available to host a number of conventions, special events and concerts. This will likely create competition for the Napavine Amphitheater, which its organizers have said is set to open soon.
But most people in Napavine wanted to see the PFD support the Napavine equestrian center, Bob Wheeler, Napavine city councilman, said.
“It seems rather ironic that they gave (equestrian center project manager Larry) Hewitt such a bad time for his wetland issue, and now they are putting this event center in a flood plain,” Wheeler said. “It’s a great idea, just a horrible location. Harrison Avenue, even on the weekend, is a mess.”
Hewitt was overseeing the project when the Department of Ecology fined the landowner, Phil Smith, for disturbing wetlands in 2008. Wheeler said that many residents feel that they have been denied their slice of the economic pie.
“This is supposed to benefit the whole county,” he said. “It is supposed to create more businesses. Where are they going to put new businesses?”
But Wheeler said that the equestrian center developers still plan to proceed, without the PFD’s $5 million.
Pullin assured, however, that the entire county will benefit by the sheer number of tourism dollars spent at the events.
“We only need to put on 25 events per year to bring in $9 million,” Pullin said.
Pullin was inspired to bring such a facility to the county after visiting a number of large sports complexes while following his son’s sports activities.
“I just thought, ‘why aren’t we doing this?’” Pullin explained. “I see a real win-win for everyone involved.”
Pullin said that, after a bit of research, he found that the national statistics backed up his observations that youth sports, in particular, generate serious dollars.
“Of the 73 million travelers nationally,” Pullin said. “Twenty million (30 percent) are traveling because of sports.”
In fact, Pullin continued, sports travel comprises 20 percent of the $213 billion travel industry. Pullin and his investors want to capture some of that $42.6 billion for Lewis County.
If a minimum of 25 events seems like a lot, Pullin reminds this facility will boast a new quad field that will allow several tournaments to be held at once. The center will have the potential to host year-round sporting events beyond ball field games: basketball, volleyball, indoor softball and even badminton.
“Youth sports is a market that’s always going to be here,” Pullin said. “We’ll develop regional tournaments that will bring people here for a championship event.”
And don’t forget about conventions and concerts, Pullin said. The center will have seating in place for 2,000, but that can easily be expanded.
“We can also put chairs up that can bring that closer to 3,500,” he noted.
Pullin and Jenni Bodnar, general manager of Thorbecke’s Fitness Centers, said that Lewis County hotels and other services are affordable, which will be a big draw for tourists.
“We have 546 rooms in Centralia and 272 rooms in Chehalis,” Pullin said. “If the occupancy is about 40 percent now…everybody will benefit if the occupancy was at 70 percent.”
Bodnar reminded that for many families, the big game is also the big trip.
“Often this is their family vacation,” she said. “And we are 90 minutes from the ocean, the mountain, Portland …”
She said that the events center will promote Lewis County attractions, including the numerous activities available in East Lewis County.
“These are active people with hours to kill,” she said.
After the interlocal agreements with the cities and school districts have been secured, the next step, Bodnar and Pullin said, is to create a marketing plan.
“Economic development is the engine of this project,” Pullin said. “If we want more sponsorships for our youth teams, we have to support our local businesses. This project will do that.”
As for the flooding issues, Pullin said that flooding has been considered from the beginning of the design phase.
“If anything (flooding) is just going to make our grass greener,” he said of the ball fields.
He also noted that he is working with Lewis County trails to enhance Fort Borst Park.
Pullin said that he hopes to see Napavine’s equestrian center constructed soon, as well.
“It’s just one more attraction to bring people to this county,” he said.
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