After managing the Erie region’s top arts, entertainment and sports venues for more than four decades, Casey Wells is calling it a career.
Wells, the executive director of Erie Events, informed the Erie County Convention Center Authority’s Board of Directors on Thursday that he intends to retire sometime in January. Wells, 66, has been with the organization for 39 years.
“It’s time,” Wells said. “I’m of retirement age, and I’ve accomplished what I wanted to accomplish here. I still love what I do, but it’s time for someone else to do it.”
The Convention Center Authority’s board oversees Erie Events, which operates the Bayfront Convention Center, Warner Theatre, Erie Insurance Arena and UPMC Park.
The organization also oversees two waterfront hotels connected to the convention center: the Sheraton Erie Bayfront Hotel on West Dobbins Landing and the Courtyard Erie Bayfront Hotel, located on the Sassafras Street Pier.
Wells started in 1983 as operations manager of the then-new Erie Civic Center, now known as Erie Insurance Arena. He was named executive director of the Convention Center Authority in 1992.
The organization was known as the Erie County Convention Center Authority until it was rebranded as Erie Events in 2015.
Wells, a Penn State University graduate, also worked as general manager of the now-defunct Erie County Fieldhouse for four years starting in 1979.
During his tenure with the Convention Center Authority/Erie Events, Wells oversaw the development of a number of expansive, multimillion-dollar projects at the organization.
Those initiatives helped reshape downtown Erie and its waterfront and bolstered the region’s cultural/entertainment offerings for concerts, plays, sporting events, conventions/meetings and various other types of performances and large gatherings.
"In terms of our projects, I always wanted to pursue what works best for Erie," Wells said.
The Convention Center Authority’s board will now begin the process of finding Wells’ replacement as executive director.
The job currently pays $197,770 a year, according to salary information Erie Events and other public authorities are required to submit to the city of Erie.
Gwendolyn White, chairwoman of the Convention Center Authority's board of directors, said Wells' leadership "has enabled us to invest in Erie's future, enhance our bayfront, create jobs and make Erie a better place to live, work and play."
White mentioned that Erie Events completed roughly $300 million worth of projects with Wells at the helm.
"Casey's leadership, efforts and active engagement not only transformed our world-class facilities, but his efforts have positioned us well for the future," White said. "We wish Casey and his family well as they embark on new adventures."
In a statement, SeaWolves owner Fernando Aguirre said of Wells: "On behalf of the Erie SeaWolves organization, I would like to thank Casey Wells for his decades of service to the Erie community, including his tenure as executive director of Erie Events. His commitment to sports and entertainment fans is evident in the first-class facilities we have at UPMC Park and Erie Events’ other best-in-class venues.
"His impact on the quality of life in Erie is undeniable, and he has been a strong partner to the teams and promoters who collaborate with Erie Events," Aguirre said. "I wish Casey the best in his retirement and look forward to working with his successor."
Wells said that although the board could launch a wide search for a new executive director, he will suggest a “highly qualified” internal candidate as his successor, and he will help "in any way I can" with the transition.
Wells declined to elaborate or name the person he plans to recommend, saying “it would be unfair for me to name someone who may or may not end up getting the job.”
White declined to go into detail about the board's process for replacing Wells, other than to say that she hopes the board will have a transition plan in place by mid-October.
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Some of Erie Events' notable projects during Wells' tenure:
● The $100 million-plus convention center complex, which features the $44 million, 145,000-square-foot convention center as its centerpiece and was the largest public-money project in Erie County’s history. The convention center opened in 2007.
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The complex, heavily financed by state funding, also includes the 200-room Sheraton Erie Bayfront Hotel, which opened in 2008, and the 192-room Courtyard by Marriott Erie Bayfront Hotel, which debuted in 2016.
●More than $32 million worth of extensive renovations to the Warner Theatre, over multiple years, including the final, $27 million phase completed earlier this year.
The renovations rehabilitated 9,000 square feet of existing space at the historic theater, which was built in 1931 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The work expanded the Warner’s stage and added new amenities such as additional bathrooms, a new entrance off French street, lighting and equipment upgrades, and new meeting/rehearsal spaces.
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“I thought about retiring earlier, but I really wanted to see the Warner completed,” Wells said of a project that had been in the works for more than 25 years and was plagued by multiple delays.
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●The $45 million renovation of the former Tullio Arena, now known as Erie Insurance Arena. The work was completed in 2013.
State government provided $32 million for the renovations, aimed at creating a multiuse entertainment complex, expanding and improving interior space, and creating a parklike atmosphere outside the front of the arena, which is known as Tullio Plaza.
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An additional $10 million came from Erie County government through gambling revenue from Presque Isle Downs & Casino. Erie Insurance paid $3 million for naming rights to the venue, and an additional $2 million came from suite rental revenue and the authority's own funds.
Improvements included new restrooms and concessions areas; renovated locker rooms; widened concourses and an expanded arena lobby; and demolition of the arena's former parking deck at East Ninth and French streets.
●The construction of what was first known as Jerry Uht Park — now known as UPMC Park — in 1995.
The downtown baseball stadium is the home of the Erie SeaWolves, the Double-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. The stadium has also seen roughly $20 million worth of renovations since it opened, much of it funded by state and local governments.
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●Nearly 4,000 feet of public walkways, featuring metal benches, fishing pods, landscaping and lighting, installed by Erie Events near the convention center as part of $7 million worth of environmental remediation work at the 12½-acre site that once housed GAF Materials Corp.
Erie Events, which wants to create a mixed-use development at the former GAF property that includes ample public access and generates property taxes, also constructed a parking garage on the site that services the Courtyard hotel and includes the Bay House & Pier 6 restaurants.
A state grant financed the clean-up of the former GAF property, which the Erie County Convention Center Authority purchased for $3 million in December 2010.
GAF closed its asphalt shingle plant in 2007 and demolished it in 2010.
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●Erie Events’ continuing development of a year-round indoor market house on the city's west bayfront, near the former GAF property and the Bayfront Parkway.
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According to preliminary plans, the market house would occupy about 22,000 square feet. Erie Events officials have said the market would feature a full-service grocery store as well as local vendors that sell chocolates, wine, meats, produce, crafts and other goods.
It would utilize both indoor and outdoor space for vendors and include a performance space for musicians and other artists.
The project, which could cost up to $10 million, has received a $3 million grant from the state's Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program, which provides funding to redevelopment efforts statewide.
Wells said the Convention Center Authority’s board has been a visionary, proactive group that has aggressively built consensus and sought public/private financing for projects aimed at improving venues and enhancing the local entertainment experience for citizens and visitors.
“We’ve had good people, Republicans and Democrats, on this board who were able to come together consistently and find the common ground to get these projects done,” Wells said.
Asked about his contributions to those projects, Wells said: “I was able to build coalitions. I think I was the person who did the research and compiled the details. I was able to explain that research and details to the board and to local politicians and tell them why these projects made sense.
"You’ve got to spend the time to convince people, and there’s a style to doing that,” Wells continued. “I think that many times, people are afraid to take a risk. But without risk there’s no reward, and if you stand still you’re falling behind.”
Wells added that his experiences at the Erie County Fieldhouse, decades ago, paid dividends later in his career.
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“That’s where I began to learn how to run a venue and I relied heavily upon people in this industry who ran different types of public assembly facilities (nationwide) to help me in what I was doing,” Wells said. “You’ve got to do your homework. You’ve got to do some reading and talk to different people and find out what the best practices are in this industry in order to be successful.”
Wells, who has five adult children and 11 grandchildren, said his retirement plans include traveling with his wife, Jill, and spending more time with family and friends.
“I did my thing,” Wells said, “This organization has been very good to me and I will help it forever. But now it’s time to relax and do something else and pull a lot of the worrying and stress out of my life.”
Contact Kevin Flowers at kflowers@timesnews.com. Follow him on Twitter at @ETNflowers.