Hartford Business Journal

14 Hartford Business Journal • August 10, 2020 • www.HartfordBusiness.com By Joe Cooper jcooper@hartfordbusiness.com H artford Athletic staff huddle around a conference call every Tuesday morning for what is likely the most important conversation of the week. The governor's office patches into the feed, while Athletic staff are armed with ideas on how the Division II professional soccer startup can safely host its next limited-capacity crowd at Dillon Stadium on Huyshope Avenue. "Everyone is very positive, but smart, that the number one pri- ority is safety," Hartford Athletic co-founder and Chairman Bruce Mandell said of collaborating with state and city officials on reopening Dillon. "We look at each game indi- vidually to make sure, most impor- tantly, that people are wearing their masks and staying distanced." That's been the weekly routine for more than two months as the sec- ond-year United Soccer League (USL) club was among the first professional sports teams in the U.S. to resume play during the global COVID-19 pandemic. The lack of sports activity nationally even helped the Athletic score a nationally televised appear- ance on ESPN2 in recent weeks. Resuming play has been a financial win for the Athletic, but it also serves as a test run for other Hartford pro sports teams and venues that are ea- ger to welcome fans with new social distancing, capacity and cleaning protocols, team and city officials say. It also gives state and city officials an opportunity to gauge public in- terest in going to events during the pandemic, said Michael Freimuth, executive director of the Capital Region Development Authority (CRDA), which operates, maintains and markets Dillon, the XL Center, Connecticut Convention Center and Rentschler Field in East Hartford. "It's teaching us how to go about the business, how to screen, how to train staff, how to operate food and beverages, how to direct traffic flow of people," Freimuth said. "All those are lessons we are picking up right now." While the Athletic is working to blunt the financial impact of CO- VID-19, in part, with game revenues, its downtown counterparts are faced with similar budget obstacles. The Hartford Wolf Pack was em- barking on the busiest part of its year (in terms of paid attendance) when the pan- demic forced the American Hockey League (AHL) to cancel the remainder of the regular season and playoffs. With eight games remaining at the XL Center, the New York Rangers' top farm team was on pace to earn a berth in the 2020 Calder Cup Playoffs. The Yard Goats in downtown's north end missed out on 70 regular season games at Dunkin' Donuts Park, which typically draws more than 400,000 fans a year. Additionally, the AHL has delayed the start of next season to at least Dec. 4, and Minor League Baseball could postpone the start of the 2021 season, according to multiple media reports. Team officials from the Wolf Pack and Yard Goats say they are working on reopening plans, and are eagerly waiting for league and state guid- ance on how to safely reopen. "We haven't gotten the greenlight on Rentschler, the NCAA or AHL," Freimuth said. "If they want to do the season, we still need the state to au- thorize phase three [reopening plans]." A partial season While the Athletic is still projected to lose money in 2020, hosting at least nine games at Dillon through October could position team owners, the Hart- ford Sports Group, to break even next season with the potential for profit- ability in the years after, Mandell said. Gameday revenue from ticket, mer- chandise and concessions sales is also helping to salvage the club's next major investment: a new state-of-the-art training-office complex that will house both players and staff under the same roof. Mandell said the team's new head- quarters will be unveiled in the next month or so, but declined to offer other details on the ongoing project. The club's 20 or so employees are currently based on Pratt Street downtown. Support from fans and corporate sponsors is also closing the gap on pro- jected revenue shortfalls, Mandell said. Through a new redemption pro- gram, most season ticket holders did not request refunds and worked with the team on different ticket options. Mandell said the Athletic's founding sponsors — including Trinity Health of New England, Travelers, The Hartford, Cigna, Stanley Black & Decker and LAZ Parking, among others — also re- Test Run Amid pandemic, Hartford Athletic's early reopening a blueprint for other downtown pro sports clubs 2020 Dillon Stadium procedures The Hartford Athletic implemented these safety protocols and proce- dures at Dillon Stadium: Fans, staff and vendors are required to wear face masks at all times while in the stadium, except while consuming food and beverage. Hand sanitizer is now available at the entrance/exit of each gate and throughout the concourse and bathrooms. Fans enter at different gates depend- ing on the section they are seated in. Non-touch ticket scanners are used by staff wearing masks and gloves. Traffic in the concourse is marked for right-side traffic only. All concessions are in containers or individual packaging. Seating ushers are situated through- out the stadium to help enforce safe and distanced seating rules. Bathroom attendants are stationed in each available restroom to clean surfaces and high-touch areas and to manage social distancing. Tailgating in all parking lots and post-game autograph sessions are prohibited. The Hartford Wolf Pack was drawing nearly 4,000 fans a game before the pandemic ended its 2019-20 season. City and state officials are allowing the Hartford Athletic to welcome crowds of 1,375 fans to Dillon Stadium during the COVID-19 pandemic. PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED

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