After 18 years, the City of Rochester has terminated the contract with worldwide venue management company SMG; a familiar name has taken over the Blue Cross Arena on a temporary contract that runs through December 31, 2018: Pegula Sports and Entertainment.
Reports indicate that declining revenues and $800,000 in overdue payments are the primary reasons for the change. For its part, SMG denies that they are overdue on payments. The arena is owned by the city and the Democrat & Chronicle reports that taxpayer subsidized funding for the building has tripled in the past 5 years - up to $1.