Nationwide Arena $400M rebuild moves forward despite funding gap

The independent government entity that owns Nationwide Arena now “has a timeline to rebuild the home” of the Blue Jackets “even as it lacks much of the estimated” $400M needed to complete the work, according to Dean Narciso of the COLUMBUS DISPATCH. The project cost is “more than twice” the $175M it took to build the arena complex 25 years ago this month. Even without secure financing commitments, Franklin County Convention Facilities Authority Exec Dir Ken Paul said that rising costs are “forcing them to move forward with the project, including a 2031 date for its completion.” The authority is seeking up to $100M from the state of Ohio, more than $100M in authority-issued bonds, $25M each from “both the city of Columbus and Franklin County and the remainder from private stakeholders, including Blue Jackets ownership.” While both Columbus and Franklin County have “committed to their share of funding, the state of Ohio is still in a legal battle over releasing almost” $5B in Ohio unclaimed funds. Paul said, “We’re doing this because we can’t lose any more time.” Narciso writes the authority has already negotiated with Columbus “an increase in the arena event admissions tax from 5% t...