Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) financing allows a property owner to finance the up-front cost of energy or other eligible improvements on a property and then pay the costs back over time through a voluntary assessment. The Canton, Ohio resort hopes to generate revenue at its center for performance, fan engagement zone, play-action plaza and expanded youth sports complex during the Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrinement week.
Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Co. in Canton, Ohio has landed $33.4 million in energy efficiency financing to help open some of its sports-themed assets by early August, the Cleveland Business Journal reported. That’s when the nonprofit Pro Football Hall of Fame—around which the company is building its football-themed resort—is scheduled to enshrine eight pro football players during its annual enshrinement week.
Coupled with $5 million in previously announced financing from Stark Community Foundation Inc., the capital is expected to help Hall of Fame Resort meet its goal of generating revenue at its center for performance, fan engagement zone, play-action plaza and expanded youth sports complex during enshrinement week, the Business Journal reported.
Hall of Fame Resort started its more than $200 million building project—considered Phase II of the resort construction—shortly after Covid hit, the Business Journal reported. The pandemic shut down the resort company’s revenue-producing event venues for a time and challenged its efforts to raise construction financing. Ongoing supply chain disruptions have delayed the delivery of materials.
“Despite the significant market challenges, we haven’t slowed down or stopped moving forward with our strategic plan,” said Michael Crawford, president and CEO of Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment, in a statement.
The resort and entertainment company is expecting its revenue to grow more than threefold this year as the pandemic eases, more of the resort’s event venues open and a more lucrative licensing agreement with the nonprofit Pro Football Hall of Fame kicks in, the Business Journal reported.
The resort’s latest financing, called Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) financing, comes from Stonehill Strategic Capital LLC and was approved by Canton City Council in coordination with the Canton Regional Energy Special Improvement District, the resort company told the Business Journal.
PACE programs allow a property owner to finance the up-front cost of energy or other eligible improvements on a property and then pay the costs back over time through a voluntary assessment, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.
Hall of Fame Resort already has used PACE financing twice to build and refinance loans on its Constellation Center for Excellence, which opened last fall, the Business Journal reported.
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