Hall of Fame Village CEO talks future: Parking deck, small arena, local government support

CANTON ? Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Co. CEO Michael Crawford walked near the construction site of a football-themed water park as heavy equipment rolled.

The $117 million indoor water park is a prime and tangible example of the company's continuing effort to leverage the birthplace of professional football into a tourist destination for overnight stays. The goal, he said, is to draw guests both locally and from outside the area to restaurants, a brewery, sports dome, practice fields, amusement park rides and the 23,000-seat Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium.

Ground was broken a year ago on the water park, and now the 147,000-square-foot complex is rising in full view of motorists on Interstate 77 and serves as a centerpiece in the $600 million Hall of Fame Village development, which wraps around the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Construction on an adjacent Hilton Tapestry hotel is expected to start soon.

Both projects are scheduled to be completed by the fall of 2024.

Crawford, a former Disney executive who led the iconic brand's entry into the Asian market, said the progress is notable because it's come in the face of economic and stock market headwinds.

Crawford is also well aware of questions and criticisms raised on social media over the Village's long-term viability and success amid a sagging stock price. The same goes for hesitancy expressed by some local politicians over how much support and assistance the Canton city government should give the development.

But he remains undeterred and is the most vocal champion of an entertainment campus that he believes will reshape local and regional tourism.

Michael Crawford: 'People are going to walk in and it's going to be a wow.'

Crawford sees more than holes being dug, walls erected and steel beams hoisted into place at the water park site. He imagines guests driving onto the property on Champions Gateway past giant digital Xs and Os meant to symbolize football plays.

"I think people are going to walk in and it's going to be a wow," he said. "This is going to be unique and different."

"... It's so fun because what you realize is you're providing memories and giving them something to be happy about," Crawford said of future visitors. "... It's pretty special when you get to create something."

Entertainment destination: Music, comedians, football: What's next for Hall of Fame Village?

Parking garage planned across from the water park

The Village is not done building.

Crawford broke some news while standing at the construction site earlier this month, announcing the "goal" of building a parking garage directly across from the water park. Counting a surface lot at the proposed two-story parking garage site, there will be room for about 1,000 vehicles, he said.

Design plans are being drawn up, and Crawford is hopeful work will begin next year.

The executive also revealed other new plans during a 70-minute site tour and interview that concluded in a Village conference room overlooking Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium.

Here's a look at the other topics discussed, including a tease at who will headline the 2024 Concert for Legends, the Village's interest in potentially constructing a small indoor arena, the success of the Village-owned DoubleTree by Hilton hotel in downtown Canton, and Crawford's response to concerns raised by local political candidates over how much the city should support and assist the development moving forward.

How much should Canton support the Village?

The question of city support for the Village was posed at an October mayoral forum between candidates William V. Sherer II and Roy Scott DePew.

DePew had said the Village’s recent growth and financing strategies should sustain it without the need for more city funding. Sherer, who was elected mayor and succeeds Tom Bernabei in January, said he would still be open to helping the Village through tax incentives, as long as the agreements benefit both sides.

Asked about the Village recently, Sherer said the development's success is undoubtedly important, "so everyone in our community can reap the benefits."

"And I'd like to think we can help them get there ... (but) the days of the city cutting a check are over, and there are a lot of ways we can help them," he said.

"This is not a one-way street, there's no doubt about that," Sherer added. "Sometimes you're not going to agree all the time, but as long as we are heading in the same direction, we need them to be successful long into the future."

Crawford emphasized that most of the city's assistance has been through loans that must be repaid with interest.

In 2022, Canton City Council approved a $5 million loan to pay for infrastructure improvements at the Hall of Fame Village. The city also contributed a $5 million grant to the $137 million stadium project in 2014.

In November 2019, the city loaned Hall of Fame Village $3.5 million in Comprehensive Plan Economic Development Issue 13 funds to assist with the renovations of what became the DoubleTree hotel in downtown Canton, said Mark Crouse, the city's finance director.

Public and private partnerships are vital to the success of projects like the Village, Crawford said.

"If you want us to last forever," he said of the Village, "we all have to hold hands and be in it together forever.

"... It's a marriage that hopefully never ends between what we're doing and (with) the city and county and the Port Authority and everybody else," Crawford said. "I hope they really see the progress and take pride in supporting it, and there are many people that do ... and we've been incredibly appreciative of that support."

Crawford also pointed out that the Village has invested its own money in the community, including spending $7 million on a fitness and workout facility at McKinley High School.

A total of $3 million also was invested to construct a parking lot in a flood zone restoration area at Stadium Park not far from the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The project included a $750,000 bond, which the park department utilized to make lighting and field improvements at other city parks, said Anne Graffice, executive vice president of global marketing and public affairs for Hall of Fame Village Resort and Entertainment.

Allyson Bussey, president and CEO of Visit Canton, said it's important to keep the Village's broader community impact in mind.

The Village generates tax revenue for the city and other parts of the county to help pave roads and support police officers and firefighters and other services, she said.

"I encourage our residents to look at our community through the lens of how impactful this development has been and challenge all of us to support projects like this," she said. "If we help our destinations succeed, we will reap the benefit of an enhanced quality of life in Stark County..."

Visit Canton also identified at least 25 nights this year in which Hall of Fame Village events contributed to elevated hotel occupancy in Stark County, she said. Events included comedian Bill Burr's show, the Tacos & Tequila Music Fest, a Kidz Bop concert, flag football tournaments, youth wrestling and soccer events, and a lacrosse tournament.

What does the Village CEO say to the skeptics?

Over the past year, the Hall of Fame Village Resort & Entertainment Co. has made financial moves designed to bolster its financial stability while aligning it for future and continued growth, Crawford said.

"When we have the opportunity to get everything built and create all the media and gaming opportunities, that's when we really start to drive significant revenue growth," he said. "That's when the share price can continue to grow."

In 2022, a reverse stock split was approved by the board of directors to prevent the Village's publicly-traded stock from being delisted by the Nasdaq exchange after the share price had spent much of the year below $1 per share.

"Just like everyone else, when we did our reverse stock split, my shares were taken down by the number of the split," Crawford said. "... I don't make decisions for my own personal best interest. I make decisions that I believe for the long term are going to be in the best interest of the shareholders."

In October, the company announced a $2.8 million public offering of common stock and warrants, a move known as a shelf-offering, which was expected to be used for the company's general purposes and potential repayment of debt.

"We did a very small equity raise to add volume to the stock, to make it a bit more tradable, to give us more stock in the system to trade with," Crawford said of the move.

Hall of Fame Resort and Entertainment stock recently has been closing around $3.70 per share.

"We're the kind of company that needs investors, not day-traders," Crawford said. "We don't need people that are just trying to make five cents a share coming in and buying it and then quickly flipping it. That's not what we are as a company."

Crawford has heard people cite the stock price as proof the Village is failing. But "I look at the creation of assets and experiences and I say we're succeeding..."

Marcus Allen suggested a musical act for the Concert for Legends

Crawford has become friends with legendary running back and Pro Football Hall of Fame member Marcus Allen through his role in "The Perfect 10," a sports documentary co-produced by the Hall of Fame Village's media division.

A member of the Village's board of directors, Allen suggested the headliner for the Concert for Legends during the 2024 Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival.

"He was out at a game in Las Vegas for the Raiders," Crawford said. "He calls me from the owner's box and he says, 'Hey, I've got somebody who I think ... will be a great concert or us ? here's the contact, go ahead and call their agent.'"

And "it's not booked yet," Crawford added. "But we've made an offer and it looks very promising."

Crawford declined to disclose the name of the entertainer at this point.

Another time, Allen "called and said, 'I got Dana White (CEO of Ultimate Fighting Championship) on the phone, and I want to introduce him to you because we should do something with these guys,' so Marcus and Dana and I are talking about what can we do.

"The big challenge is outside for those guys if it rains … then they just can't do anything," Crawford said of UFC mixed martial arts fighting events. "So we're still (discussing) that kind of thing."

Indoor arena at the Hall of Fame Village?

Crawford said an indoor arena in the range of 3,000 to 4,000 seats is "absolutely" being considered in a future phase of the Village campus.

"I do think the city needs a facility like that," he said. "I think it can attract a whole new level of events be it sports, be it music, be it comedic acts or whatever the case may be."

Existing entertainment venues in Canton include the Palace Theatre and Canton Memorial Civic Center, both located downtown.

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The Palace is a historic venue dating to 1926 with plans for an expansion. Capacity is about 1,500.

Opened in the early 1950s, the Civic Center holds roughly 5,000 depending on the event.

Jeff Dafler, the incoming CEO for the Canton Regional Chamber of Commerce, said the need for an indoor arena or facility locally should be explored.

"I certainly think that (an indoor facility at the Village) merits serious consideration here in the community," he said. "And I think it's important for various entities ... to come together and evaluate what exactly are the needs we have, and taking a look at the market and the potential demands and what we might be able to attract to the region as the result of a key investment like that.

"Whether ultimately that is something that is an investment on the Hall of Fame Village campus or an investment downtown or wherever it might be, I think that is something we're seriously considering," Dafler added. "And even if it means a significant reimagining of the Civic Center."

Will A-list talent keep coming to the Village?

Village entertainment has included star comedians Dave Chappelle, Kevin Hart and Bill Burr.

Crawford said he expects the Village to showcase more national acts, and it's gotten easier, with promoters often initiating contact. For example, Hart's representation had suggested Burr perform at the Village.

"It's like the flywheel," he said. "Once you get it going, it keeps turning."

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Downtown hotel could have become an eyesore

Crawford touted the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel as a "fantastic success story."

Purchased by the Village for nearly $4 million about three years ago, the hotel was in jeopardy of closing. Another $30 million was spent on renovations.

"If you look at the quality ... I would put it up against any hotel anywhere in this region," Crawford said of the upgrades and customer service.

The DoubleTree is now profitable and contributed to the Village's record third quarter revenue of $8.7 million, 8% more than the same quarter last year, Crawford said. The hotel also recently received Hilton's Q3 Brighter Together CARE Award.

Dafler said the Village saved the hotel from becoming vacant and "an incredible liability for downtown Canton."

'You're not going to please everyone.'

Despite doubts and criticism voiced on social media about the Village, including by some shareholders, Crawford said he's keeping his eye on the goal of creating a destination unlike any other.

"I believe this will be and is already a tremendous asset ... for Canton and for our county," he said. "And our team is really proud to have that impact."

"My job is to listen to people, motivate the team (Village employees), leverage my expertise in this field and create experiences that our guests will enjoy," Crawford said. "You're not going to please everyone, you're just not."

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This article originally appeared on The Repository: Hall of Fame Village CEO talks water park, arena plans, Marcus Allen