VenuWorks slated for a 3-year contract renewal to manage city's entertainment venues

CEDAR RAPIDS - The City Council is expected Tuesday evening to approve a three-year renewal of its contract with VenuWorks, the management company that operates the city's U.S. Cellular Center, Paramount Theatre and the Ice Arena.

VenuWorks, a national firm with headquarters in Ames, is headed up in Cedar Rapids by Scott Schoenike. The firm had been known as Compass Management Inc.

The new contract takes into account that the flood-damaged Paramount Theatre remains closed and the U.S. Cellular Center is set to undergo a $15-million upgrade with a new $52-million Event Center to be built next to it.

Part of VenuWorks' compensation comes from 5 percent of gross revenue, the contract notes, but that revenue is significantly less than it otherwise would be because of the construction slated for the Paramount Theatre and U.S. Cellular Center.

As a result, VenuWorks will receive a $2,000-a-month “renovation consultation fee” until the Paramount is reopened, and a $5,000-a-month “variable management fee” for months in which the U.S. Cellular Center is unable to schedule events because of construction.