Does ice arena project melt your heart?

On our Manatee County Commission consent agenda for Feb. 17, it was called "Project Grace."

So I will give any of our readers a Tootsie Roll if they knew what the heck Project Grace was about before that meeting.

When you talk about government transparency, this one was like trying to thread a needle, at a depth of 100 feet, in the Great Salt Lake.

District 5 Commissioner Bob McCann was curious, so he pulled the item off the consent agenda for discussion.

For those of you in the public who would share that same curiosity, it would have taken a few clicks on the online agenda to get to this description.

"Project Grace is a proposed regional ice complex designed to expand recreation, tourism, and event-driven economic activity in Manatee County. The facility will include three to four ice sheets and function as a destination venue for youth and adult hockey, figure skating, regional tournaments, concerts, corporate events, and community programming."

So I guess "Project Ice Arena" would have been out of line?

Many of us would like to give the county the benefit of the doubt when it comes to driving items through the Commission by way of the consent agenda. Some commissioners have openly criticized county staff members of using the consent agenda to sneak items past them.

But we have to remember that this isn't all about the commissioners. They get briefed about consent agenda items, and it certainly is their responsibility to pull those items off the consent agenda that deserve some discussion.

The public, meanwhile, deserves more transparency. If you are an interested citizen who is just trying to keep track of what your elected representatives are making decisions about, you might have trouble following the bouncing ball.

If you live in Lakewood Ranch, you might have passed by this consent agenda listing:

11. Consent to enter into Economic Stimulus Public-Private Development Agreement for "Project Grace," and authorizing execution of the Economic Development Agreement, Stephanie Garrison, Government Relations Director — District 5.

So there you have it. If you were playing watchdog, would this have caught your eye?

This is a huge project for Manatee County-owned Premier Sports Campus North that deserves plenty of public discussion and feedback. Sure, it's early in the project, but wouldn't it be better to gauge public interest now before all the plans are finalized and it becomes a "yes or no" proposition for commissioners?

I want to point out that I am sure this project represents a lot of hard work by Elliott Falcione, the executive director of the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau. When it comes to providing Manatee County with much needed economic impact, Falcione is the man, whether than means bringing huge amateur sporting events or pro golf tournaments to the area, attracting fan favorites such as powerboat racing or concerts, or keeping up with the Jones in terms of convention facilities.

By the nature of his business, he has to work behind the scenes at times to get deals done. His positive results for the county are well documented. He is just doing his job.

With that said, it falls upon the commissioners to make sure general information can be digested by the public before a final decision is made. For those of us in the public, the worry becomes whether everything is a done deal before the citizens can offer feedback.

In this particular case, an ice hockey arena would seem to be a questionable fit for Premier, if you expected that area to be a park.

In monetary terms, it could be a windfall for the county.

The agenda item notes, "Once operational, Project Grace is expected to support 400–650 ongoing jobs, equivalent to approximately 250–350 full-time positions, across facility operations, rink management, sports programming, food and beverage, retail, event production, security, and guest services."

The venue is expected to host more than 200 events annually. Think about the lines at Taco Bell.

But if you are living the tranquil life in Lakewood Ranch, your question might be, "Who cares about jobs? This was supposed to be a park, so why can't we concentrate on park amenities?"

In my eyes, the key part about this plan is that this facility supposedly will double as an events center, something that is a big need in East County. Our entertainment offerings are severely limited from May to November when our temperature rises from hot to broil. This is, in many ways, an exciting development.

But a lot of questions must be asked about the viability of an ice arena being used to host concerts, agricultural events, or festivals. Will the conversion from ice area to events center be economically feasible on a recurring basis?

Another question could be whether the ice arena will affect other park projects, such as proposed softball and baseball fields, a dog park, or other park amenities.

Could the county still build the much-needed events center and allow the ice arena just to be an ice arena? 

If the land at Premier Sports Campus North is used for the ice arena, will there still be enough land to deliver an events center and the other proposed projects? 

The ice arena will be built by the private company Icemann Development Manatee LLC, which is expected to invest $50 million into the construction of the 70,000- to 90,000-square-foot facility. Manatee County's share would be $10 million. You can read about the other particulars of the plan in reporter Lesley Dwyer's story on Page 3.

I don't think I was the only one who imagined a G.T. Bray-type park in Lakewood Ranch when Manatee County bought more than 230 acres from Schroeder-Manatee Ranch in 2017 and 2018, and openly talked about park amenities. The county finally came through with the pickleball and aquatics center that is expected to be open by the fall. I am all for an ice arena, if it doesn't take away from the original plan.

If you are concerned about Premier's future, the time to call your commissioners is now.

Tell them you want to talk about Project Grace.