CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The Capital City plans better promotions to enhance the experience of the Mountain East Conference basketball tournament next March at the Charleston Civic Center.
Entering the final leg of a three-year agreement, the MEC decided against an opt-out clause that would have moved the tournament to another location. After a series of recent meetings, Charleston wants to keep the tournament not only for 2017 but for the next three years, said Deputy Mayor Rod Blackstone.
“It’s their signature event and we want to make it as special as possible in the third year so we can make a great impression moving forward and show them that Charleston does care about this,” Blackstone said.
The MEC plans to bid out the tournament for a new three-year contract after 2017.
Last year’s event drew only 7,816 fans over three days, with revenue falling short of the $60,000 benchmark that allowed the league to consider opting out early.
The city pledged to make the tournament more cost-effective for the MEC along with highlighting an event that previously has gone ignored by the city.
“We’ve formed a local organizing committee of people involved in hospitality around town that are caring about this,” Blackstone said.
The MEC opens a busy basketball period at the Civic Center in March, followed by the high school girls and boys state tournaments. The city wants to bundle that momentum.
“It’s an opportunity not only to see the best high school action in West Virginia but also the best college basketball too,” Blackstone said.
The conference has expanded the field, announcing it will bring 10 men’s and women’s teams to Charleston next year starting the tournament a day earlier, March 1.