A vote for the proposed multi-million- dollar sports complex in Macomb is expected to be on the Macomb City Council's agenda sometime in the new year.
The Community News Brief has been following the proposal since it was first brought up at a council meeting in October 2024, with the initial performa provided by Sports Facilities Companies (SFC) in January 2025. To bring the public up-to-date, the Brief has composed the following story to shed light on the project, its background, the implications for the community and more.
How it Started: The Background According to Macomb Mayor Mike Inman, his office was contacted by Joe Fackel, who originally hails from Rock Island, to arrange a meeting in Las Vegas at ICSC, the largest commercial real estate gathering in the nation, in which, Inman and Macomb Area Economic Development (MAEDCO) President/CEO Kim Pierce take part in each year. Following the Vegas meeting, Fackel visited Macomb to further review the possibility of a large-scale complex, and with that, the proposed initiative grew legs.
The city put together a planning committee composed of representatives from the city, including community development, the county, MAEDCO, the Macomb Convention & Visitors Bureau, the Macomb Area Chamber of Commerce, the Macomb Park District, the McDonough County YMCA and McDonough District Hospital. A few of the reps visited similar complexes in Mattoon, IL, which is closest to Macomb's proposed event center; Rocky Mount, NC, and Overland Park, KS.
How it Started Part 2: The Study The initial facility study, coming in at a cost of $40,000, with funding for the study kicked in from several organizations that are part of the planning committee, was completed by SFC. The company has served 3,000 communities to date, and in addition to completing the initial feasibility study, would act as the management company for the Macomb complex, including arranging tournaments, concerts, events and other programming.
According to the study, the complex could bring visitors from four-plus hours to Macomb for sporting and other events held at the sports complex. Once here, the study noted that guests would stay in hotels, eat a restaurants and shop at local stores. While there are 125 sports facilities in the region, just 10 have major indoor arenas.
The closest to Macomb is 90-minutes from Macomb in Bettendorf, IA; however, the City of Quincy, approximately 60 miles down the road from Macomb, is reviewing the possibility of a sports complex in their community.
From Concept to Creation: The Recommendation & Benefits The Sports Facilities Advisory recommended building an 8.18-acre indoor only sports/event complex in Macomb that will contain eight basketball courts, 16 volleyball courts, seating for 4,000 and a parking lot to accommodate 434 vehicles. SFC estimates the facility could host 20-30 tournaments and events in year one, and approximately 40 tournaments and events by year five, along with other special performances, private party rentals and family-related events. The facility will also have a 'family entertainment center' that could include such features as video arcade, a climbing wall, laser tag and other recreational options yearround.
Overnight visitors are projected to spend $138 per day in year one, eventually reaching $146 in the fifth year. An overall $7.4 million in spending within the community is estimated for the first year, with that number increasing to $15.5 million by the fifth year.
Bet Your Bottom Dollar: The Costs The Sports Facilities report indicates it would take two to three years to build the complex, with startup costs of $58.4 million. The city, which does undertake the cost of building the facility, would own the complex, with SFC managing all aspects of the new city venture. The concept is that the sports complex will be an anchor for a much larger retail and commercial development located near the facility, Inman said.
'City sales tax income from visitor meals and lodging is a large part of determining the overall success and funding for this project. Macomb and the surrounding area will benefit from the overall economic development impact that follows facilities such as this as we'll be adding more hotels, restaurants and shopping experiences,' Inman explained. 'If we don't move on this, we will not get this opportunity again. We want to see our tax dollars stay here.
'I've said this time and time again, property taxes will not be impacted. We will not raise property taxes to fund this initiative,' he stressed. 'Along every step of this process there is an 'off-ramp' and if there is something that comes up that affects our community negatively in terms of taxes or costs, we will not continue,' he added. 'Sports tourism is a $55 billion dollar industry, and within five to eight years, it's expected to increase to $85 billion. This complex serves as an anchor for much larger development that benefits our community and our region.'
The city has agreed to establish a business development district to generate additional sales tax income, he noted; however, that tax will not impact grocery, medicine and car sales. The performa for the complex indicated that the facility and its operations will be financially stable by year five; however, it will operate in the red for the first few years.
'The council has been overwhelmingly supportive of this district and the project overall,' Inman said.
Show Me the Money: Sales Tax, Bonds & Private Investors City officials have met with a municipal consultant for assistance in pulling together funding options. Inman said they're looking at 'hundreds of factors,' including the sales tax option for the business district, bonds, grants and more.
'Of course, the question is 'Can we afford to do this?' We should have an answer to that critical question soon, and if it's determined we cannot, that's the off ramp,' he stated. 'We're also looking at the possibility of support from the State of Illinois Star Bonds, which is a new program we'll have to apply for. We have to show job creation and a variety of other factors in order to apply and qualify. It's a competitive process and there's no guarantee, but the Star Bonds are a deal maker or deal breaker for us.'
Besides the Star Bonds, which will open for applications in the new year, private developers are also being courted. Pierce and Inman have been pitching the proposed sports/event complex and have a short list of interested developers.
Why Macomb & Why Now?
Inman said that the region has struggled in recent years with population decline due to a variety of factors, and as such, the city and county have to be more proactive than ever to ensure continued viability of community's economic development.
'We are solely responsible for stabilizing our population, and with that, we have to be willing to enter into new ventures,' he pointed out. 'We plugged up a hole in the leaking flood wall with new development, including T.J.Maxx and Hobby Lobby, but we need to do more to bring in additional revenue to benefit our region. We're not going to get what Macomb and McDonough County residents want without doing these new things, again this means more retail, restaurant and other options for our community. We will not wave the white flag and sit back and do nothing about our population and spending decline.'
Inman also noted there is a demand for this type of facility, with traveling sports teams, including local privately-ran travel teams, often making treks out of town (and even out of state) to participate in tournaments, which can run over the course of an entire weekend and sometimes over several days.
'There are also opportunities we cannot even imagine. For example, one of the complexes we visited never dreamt they'd host a national archery competition, or a major monster truck rally, but they did,' Inman shared. 'The space is made to be flexible to accommodate a variety of events. And SFA will book the events and manage the logistics.'
Pierce added “The proposed sports/event center is not just about recreation, it’s really about driving economic development and tourism to the area.”
Location, Location, Location
Ten local sites were initially evaluated, with the consultant favoring land on the city's east side. Now, the possible sites have been narrowed to three; however, the city is not in the position to announce the three locations at this time.
The Future: Success vs. Failure 'Even if we build this, and it's ultimately not a success, property taxes will not be affected as we're only obligating the business development district revenue and TIF money,' he again stated 'For example, we build it and five years later, it closes, the city will not use general operating funds to pay the debt service for this project.'
Inman brought up the many 'off-ramps' again, noting throughout every step of the process, there are opportunities to ceaseand- desist if it's determined not to be financially viable and feasible for the city to support.
'We've done our due diligence on this for well over a year, and continue to do so every step of the way,' he added.
City Council Speaks Out The Macomb City Council is expected to vote on a recommendation, most likely in January, to continue forward with the project or not, Inman said. While council member Justin Schuch supports the concept, he has vocalized his concerns over the course of the year-long discussion, including the need for more public input.
'Much of my concerns lie with the lack of input from community members. We need to hear more and provide opportunities for them to give their feedback on this plan,' Schuch said. 'I'm not opposed to the concept or the direction we're going; I just don't believe we should proceed without letting the community give more feedback and share ideas. We need to have better communication with the the community and give more notice to attend a program to learn more.'
The city hosted an open house at the Spoon River College Outreach Center in late September over the noon hour. Schuch feels that it simply wasn't enough time for people to learn about the project and ask detailed questions. He'd like to see a town hall or open forum for the community to ask questions and get answers.
'Overall, it's good to explore other avenues to bring people into Macomb,' he added. 'But at this point I'm certainly hearing more concerns about this, and I think a lot of this is born from people not having enough information about the process and the concern over property taxes. People seem stuck on that piece.
'For me, it comes down to public awareness, and holding some true open forums and sessions,' Schuch concluded. 'That will take time, but that's what needs to happen.'
Council member Dave Dorsett said at this time, given all the information that has been brought forward to date, he's in favor of proceeding with the project as long as the city continues its due diligence.
'I'm not 100 percent married to it, but as projects go for the future of Macomb, this is on the front burner. Things we've always wanted, such as more manufacturers and more high-paying primary employers, we have difficulty getting because of our declining population. We have to look at going a different direction and if we can get more people coming into our community, we might get more to stay,' Dorsett pointed out. 'But we just can't say we're going to do this. We have to do our due diligence and be certain this is going to work.
'We have to know how the numbers will work. Can we afford the annual upkeep? There may be a deficit at first, but once we see all the numbers, can they be made smaller or even erased depending on how we structure the funding?', he remarked. 'Due diligence might take a little longer than we'd like, but we need to do this right, not fast.'
According to Dorsett, the City of Macomb lives on sales tax, and the more that the city can bring in, the less officials need to rely on property and other taxes, so for him, new development that brings in more sales tax revenue is a win. In addition, his complete support for the project also comes down to figuring out how to put together the total package to fund the project 'If you fund it this way, there may be a big gap, but if you fund it this way, it could be a smaller gap, and if you fund it this way, there could be no gap,' he pointed out. 'Until we research this further and see what's available to us, some of the possible funding sources, such as Star Bonds, could go a long way to making this happen. At the moment, we need to look at who is going to be involved, what bonds will be used and when it's on paper that it's going to fly, I'm all in.'
Dorsett also wanted to stress the city is not looking to supplant WIU, which has been a community partner for over 125 years and has helped keep the city moving forward over the decades. However, with changes to educational systems and society itself, it's time for the city to be relied on, he pointed out.
'If anything, this complex could raise even more awareness for WIU, but it's time for our half of the equation,' Dorsett said. 'We have to see where things are going in the future and follow up. I've spent a lot of money on behalf of the city in my 15 years with the City of Macomb. We're about to spend $40 million on a new water plant, and I've helped invest those monies to improve our town. But this one project does wake me up at night, staring into the dark. It does worry me because it's a significant bet, but it's also a bet on our future. We can't continue to do things the same way and expect a different outcome.
'It's speculative and expensive and people might think we're crazy, but most people have been supportive of this and trust that we will act in all our best interest,' he declared. 'I'm worried about making the right decision for our future, but just like I've always done, I will do what I believe is in the best interest of our community.'
Information & Input The City of Macomb has put together a feedback form on its website, and also has a variety of presentation-related information uploaded. For more information or to submit feedback, visit cityofmacomb. com/cityofmacombproposedsportsfacility/
