TOLEDO, Ohio — Toledo City Council did not take action Tuesday afternoon on plans for Promenade Park's summer concert series, with no mention of it during the meeting. It remains in committee.
On Monday afternoon, a local promoter answered several questions from Toledo City Council about his plans to save Toledo’s summer concert series.
Hunter Brucks and HBC Management, the company behind failed amphitheater projects in Waterville and Rossford, are seeking a license from the city to put on a minimum of 10 concerts. In exchange, Brucks will pay the city $10 and he and his company will assume full responsibility for the event. The license would be good for one year, after which it would be reevaluated for renewal.
ProMedica subsidized the concert series for the past seven years, but Brucks would be responsible for the full cost of the event, which could be as much as $400,000 for a top-level artist.
“The big thing is that we are taking the full risk for the show. We are going to chase sponsors as best we can, naming rights, that sort of thing,” Brucks said when addressing council on Monday.
As of Monday afternoon, Brucks had not shown his financing to city council. For much of his career, he has acted as a buyer for events, meaning he has not put up his own money and instead served as a middleman of sorts.
Although Toledo is supposed to have no financial risk, Delta County in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula had to pay $250,000 to help out with the Northern Lights Music Festival in Escanaba -- which Brucks was involved in as the promoter -- because of unexpected infrastructure costs.
Council member Cerssandra McPherson and other council members were concerned that union members would not be part of the Promenade Park team. McPherson was also concerned about the economics.
“Just because you are saying it, doesn’t make it true. I’m not convinced all of this will happen,” she said. “This isn’t Chicago where people can afford $120-150 tickets. That won’t fly here.”
Brucks is planning to put in about 3,600-3,700 fixed stadium seats, but there will also still be lawn seating available. Depending on the artist, he said premium seats could be about $90 and second-tier and lawn seats could be $35-40.
Council member Theresa Morris chaired Brucks' meeting Monday and expressed concern that he referred to the plan as the "Toledo Amphitheater."
“This is not an amphitheater. This is a public park,” she said.
Brucks said that fencing would need to remain around the backstage area, but he was hopeful that it could be removed in other areas.
After the meeting, a team of 11 Investigates reporters asked Brucks several questions about a PowerPoint portfolio that he submitted to council.
On Friday, Monday, and Tuesday morning, 11 Investigates called people he submitted as references and festivals he said were clients.
Brucks initially asked, “What right do you have to call my references?”
When told that those were public records because they were listed as “Exhibit C” in his application, he dropped his objection.
11 Investigates also addressed several concerns with the portfolio, including claims that he worked with the Blue Ridge Rock Festival in Virginia and the Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort in central Michigan.
John Slye, a co-founder of the Blue Ridge Rock festival, said that Brucks originally wanted to produce the festival but had no involvement.
When told this after the meeting, Brucks said “he’s lying.”
On Monday night, Brucks provided a contract between Roadshow Talent, HB Concerts (Brucks’ company) and the event’s promoters. The contract shows that HB Concerts brought Roadshow Talent to organizers to book acts.
Brucks mentioned Soaring Eagle being a large part of his booking history. However, those shows were booked about five years ago when Brucks was with Meridian Entertainment. When 11 Investigates reached out to the casino’s public relations department, no one recognized Brucks’ name.
But several events did have positive things to say about Brucks.
American 1 Credit Union Event Center in Jackson, Mich., praised his work, saying they have worked with him for the last 17 years. They are meeting him in Nashville next month to talk business for next year, a spokesman said.
Jackson County fair officials reported a positive relationship with him.
HBC lists LEFPA Lansing Stadium as a client. There is no such thing as Lansing Stadium. A LEFPA spokesman did not recognize the name Hunter Brucks but said it has worked with Meridian Entertainment in the past.
Foundation 14, a veterans' group based in Milan, Mich., said it has had a very positive relationship with Brucks and that he cares deeply about veterans.
While being questioned by council members, Brucks touted his company's involvement in the amphitheater at Treasure Island Resort & Casino in Minnesota. It is a very popular venue, with a capacity of 16,000. However, neither a phone call nor an email were returned seeking comment.
Another issue Brucks was asked about by 11 Investigates was a recommendation letter included in his company’s portfolio. It was said to be from Rick Frank of Live Nation/Detroit.
There is no “Rick Frank” at Live Nation. Rick Franks was the former head of the Detroit office. The company would not confirm the letter was from Franks, but said if it was, it would have contact information. It did not have contact information.
During an exchange after the council meeting, 11 Investigates asked Brucks why Franks would misspell his name twice in the letter he sent.
After first saying it must have been a typo, Brucks said: “Oh, geez, I wasn't in charge of the ‘S’ (key) that day."
At that point, after calling the reporter “a tough guy” multiple times, Brucks turned to a group of council members who were still sitting behind him and said: "It's all this negative. This guy is drilling me down in the dirt here. I'm only trying to do something good for you people.”
McPherson quickly asked: “You people? Oh no.”
Brucks quickly replied “that's not what I meant.”
After the interview, Brucks quickly left council chambers and was overheard in the lobby saying he couldn’t believe he was allowed to be ambushed.
When an 11 Investigates team left One Government Center, Brucks approached them and said: “If this deal falls apart, I’m going to sue you for defamation of character.”
Two WTOL 11 cameras were rolling on him at the time.
Before and after WTOL's 6 p.m. broadcast, Brucks sent multiple texts in response to the interview. In one, he apologized for how that happened. In another, he thanked WTOL for its “fair and balanced” report, though he objected to the report’s inclusion of the interaction with the council members during the meeting.
His team then sent documents related to the Blue Ridge Festival and Northern Lights Festival in Escanaba. Visit Escanaba was Brucks' client for that event. A message was left for director Robert Micheau to discuss the $250,000 expense that Delta County incurred from the event, but the message had not been returned by late Tuesday afternoon.
It is unclear when council will vote on the license. Councilman Nick Komives said a meeting in two weeks is the likely target. Booking for large shows is done well in advance, meaning each lost week makes it more challenging for Brucks or whoever else takes over the series to book high-profile shows.
Editor's note: This story has been edited to correct information regarding fixed seating and add additional information about the proposed license agreement.