Tuscaloosa Mayor Updates County Commission On Saban Center, New Event Venue

TUSCALOOSA, AL — Less than 24 hours after the Tuscaloosa City Council voted to move forward on the design phase of the Saban Discovery Center and an adjacent 70,000-square-foot events venue on the same campus, Mayor Walt Maddox paid a visit to the Tuscaloosa County Commission to discuss the projects in detail with county officials.

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"It’s just natural that the first stop the city would make as it begins its work is right here at the county courthouse," Maddox said.

As Patch previously reported, the Tuscaloosa City Council voted 6-1 on Tuesday in favor of the next steps for the two related projects on the current site of the Tuscaloosa News building, with District 4 Councilor Lee Busby being the only vote against.

"The Saban Discovery Center and the events center are two separate projects that we are proposing on one campus," Maddox told the Commission. "This is why the final design is so important."

FAST FACTS

• The design phase is expected to last through September 2023.
• Plans call for nearly 800 future parking spots in the area, including multiple electric vehicle chargers. This will be in addition to roughly 300 parking spots at the Tuscaloosa Amphitheater.
• Maddox also said the city had been approached by entities in the private sector over potential parking deck options.
• The Saban Discovery Center — with an estimated cost of $45 million — will see 20%-25% of its funding come from individuals and corporations, such as Nick and Terry Saban. Projections expect 177,000 visitors annually once the facility is open.
• The proposed event center's 30,000-square-foot multi-use hall inside the large events center is expected to seat 1,000 people for a banquet event or host a convention with up to 100 10-by-10-foot exhibit booths.
• City leaders expect to bid the projects out in October 2023, before construction begins the following December.
• The tentative opening date is set for October 2025.

SABAN DISCOVERY CENTER

Maddox explained that while the Saban Center will be dedicated solely to education-based amenities, the separate events center will serve as a needed asset for economic development, providing meeting and convention space, as well as enough square footage in its main hall or ballroom to host certain athletic events.

He also said the city's goal in putting the two facilities on the same campus centers on the further revitalization of west Tuscaloosa, which includes the Tuscaloosa Amphitheater, Tuscaloosa Riverwalk and the new River District Park — expected to be open by or around Labor Day.

"The first thing we want to do is find the most appropriate site where it can be located that not only accentuates our downtown and riverfront, but continues the western growth of Tuscaloosa," he said. "[The overall project is the] largest investment in the city’s history in terms of a capital project. It will be roughly $90 million in construction. Let’s put it in the heart of where there is so much investment already that’s ongoing."

What's more, he pointed out other active projects in the area that will compliment the new mixed-used campus, including a $21.5 million expansion of the Riverwalk and a major road project being undertaken by the Tuscaloosa County Road Improvement Commission (TCRIC).

"Right now, there is a $65 million TCRIC road project that’s going on from Jack Warner Parkway to Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard," Maddox said. "Phase three of that project hopefully will go to bid sometime in October or November."

The $45 million Saban Center will also be the new home of the Tuscaloosa Children's Theatre and Children's Hands-On Museum, which will rebrand itself to IGNITE.

"This will not be your father’s and mother’s CHOM," Maddox said. "This is going to be a totally new concept. The best way I can describe it, commissioners, is the McWane Center in Birmingham."

As part of the educational offerings and in line with the wishes of the Saban family, Maddox said the educational venue will focus on four particular disciplines that will reflect the K-12 curriculum for Tuscaloosa City Schools.

"We've been in discussions with Tuscaloosa City Schools to ensure their curriculum matches the exhibits and interactions," the mayor said. "If you’re studying health and human sciences one week in the classroom, your experience in the Saban Center is aligned with what you’ve been studying in the classroom."

The four disciplines focused at the Saban Center will include:

• Sports science.
• Technology, engineering and robotics.
• Earth and sustainability.
• Forms of energy.

"We believe that this type of experiential learning is very important to our young people to get excited about the STEAM field," Maddox said, referencing the common acronym that stands for science, technology, engineering, arts and math.

EVENT CENTER

While the Saban Center will provide a range of new opportunities for area youth, Maddox said the adjacent event center on the western side of the site will be focused on providing much-needed event space for the city's rapidly growing tourism economy.

The proposed event center, at present, is planned to be 70,000 square feet total, featuring a 30,000-square-foot ballroom capable to hosting everything from athletic events to large-scale dinners.

Johnson Consulting — the firm tasked with conducting a feasibility study and due diligence for the city with respect to the events center — reported that the economic impact for the Tuscaloosa County Commission would be $359,000 in direct new sales tax dollars annually during the first year after opening.

"People want larger spaces, so we hope to be working with the University of Alabama, by the way," Maddox said. "Now that the council has authorized final design, we can become more serious in those discussions."

Maddox also insisted there is a direct construction impact for county sales tax revenue to the tune of nearly $400,000 in the construction of the facility. He then provided the following projections:

Revenue projections provided by Maddox during his presentation

According to Johnson Consulting, an analysis of the economic impact of lost events for the City of Tuscaloosa from 2020 until the present comes out to a loss of $603,158 in total investment, equating to $56.7 million in economic impact and $836,401 in tax revenue for the city. This data was not lost on city and tourism officials, who argue that the simple data underscores the need for such a venue.

Even if the event center has a smaller 20,000-square-foot multi-purpose hall or ballroom, the firm said it would still have the capability on its own to generate 30,000 room nights annually for local hotels.

Johnson Consulting also recommended the event center be built adjacent to The Saban Discovery Center to optimize the utilization and economic impact of the site.

For County Commissioners, questions focused on floor plans, the positioning of the two facilities, the involvement of the Tuscaloosa County School System and, most importantly, the debate over the potential for the county to receive revenue from lodging and hotel taxes.

As it stands, Tuscaloosa County does not benefit from lodging and hotel taxes.

District 4 Commissioner Reginald Murray, for example, asked Maddox if he and the Tuscaloosa City Council would be willing to support the county getting involved and receiving some type of lodging tax, "so that the county can reap some additional benefits."

"I think that would go a long way toward the county being able to assist in a plan like this," Murray said, before mentioning a failed push in the past for the county to implement such a lodging tax on hotels.

"To me, that's a decision you were elected by the people of Tuscaloosa to make and that’s your decision," Maddox responded. "I don’t see the City of Tuscaloosa weighing in on that issue."

Maddox did, however, offer the Commissioners the opportunity to meet with his staff individual in the coming months to receive a full rundown on the projects.

"We would like our team to give you a briefing on this," Maddox said. "It would probably take 90 minutes or so get you through entire briefing, but we would like to begin those discussions."

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