BIG NEWS STORY
Owner of Mesa sports complex files for bankruptcy
MESA, Ariz. — The owner of Legacy Park: Arizona’s Premiere Sports & Entertainment Complex announced Monday it was filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Legacy Cares Inc. said the 320-acre sports complex in Mesa would remain in operation as the organization uses the bankruptcy process to address debt obligations.
“Legacy Cares’ goal is to preserve this landmark facility so it can continue to serve the community for many years to come," Legacy Cares President Douglas Moss said. "Legacy Cares intends to use this process to protect and support the Park’s business operations and address Legacy Cares’ debt obligations while working towards an orderly and efficient possible sale of Legacy Cares’ assets in a manner that maximizes their value.”The organization has also recruited the help of an investment bank to assist with the potential sale of all Legacy Cares assets.
Last month, Bell Bank announced it was ending its partnership with the sports complex following public reports of financial concerns. As a result, the facility changed its name to Legacy Park.
The facility opened in January 2022 and was already in financial trouble by October, according to the Arizona Republic.
Legacy Cares said the facility's day-to-day operations will not be adversely affected in the coming months and does not foresee any negative impact on the local community."
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It got a BIG OFFICIAL PROMOTION from the City of Mesa's own Newsroom
MESANOW: Nation's Largest $280-Million Multi-Purpose Sports-and-Entertainment Complex
From the City of Mesa's non-profit newsroom
Bell Bank Park Officially Opens as Nation's Largest Multi-Venue Sports and Entertainment Complex
ABOUT BELL BANK PARK
Bell Bank Park, a 320-acre world class family sports and entertainment complex, fulfills the mission of Legacy Cares.
✓ ABOUT OAKVIEW GROUP (OVG)
Oak View Group (OVG) is a global sports and entertainment company founded by Tim Leiweke and Irving Azoff in 2015. OVG is focused on being a positive disruption to business as usual in the sports and live entertainment industry and currently has eight divisions across four global offices (Los Angeles, New York, London, and Philadelphia).
✓ ABOUT LEGACY SPORTS USA
Legacy Sports USA is the organization behind Bell Bank Park, initially the vision of Randy J. Miller, Chairman of Legacy Sports USA, Chad J. Miller, CEO of Legacy Sports USA, and Olympic gold medalist Dan O'Brien, Director of Performance Training at Bell Bank Park. Legacy Sports USA is dedicated to hosting premiere tournament events for youth sports and offering opportunities for athletes of all ages and at all levels to develop skills and enjoy training and competition.
Bell Bank Park also includes outdoor and indoor team athletic facilities geared to high-energy entertainment, sports venues, and a multi-purpose arena and outdoor amphitheater for live events, family shows, exhibitions, and conventions.
YOUTH SPORTS COMPLEX HUSTLE
"Stephen Griffin, a whistleblower in Rhode Island who is a former executive and investor in a failed youth sports company in Boston, has been predicting trouble for Bell Bank Park since September.
✓ Griffin, an accountant for major firms before becoming an investor, doesn’t think the Mesa project is capable of generating the revenue needed to cover its current obligations.
He said the revenue potential and economic benefits of destination sports facilities like Bell Bank Park have been over-hyped to communities across the country.
✓ That’s also been true in the East Valley, where Mesa and Queen Creek officials have been especially enthusiastic about the park and its future potential as a magnet for visitors to their municipalities. Although some Gilbert officials were concerned about the park’s impact on the town’s Cactus Park sports venue, they too took a broader favorable view of its tourist potential.
✓ . . .Griffin said he is providing information to the Securities and Exchange Commission about Legacy Cares. He shared an email exchange with the Tribune showing communication with Rebecca Olsen, deputy chief of the SEC’s Public Finance Abuse Unit. . .
Whatever the outcome of Legacy Cares’ default and upcoming bondholders’ meeting, a statement Griffin posted in early September to kick off his whistleblowing campaign is resonating today.
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“Whoever said municipal bonds are boring has never been to Mesa, Arizona. Stay tuned – this story is incredible,” he wrote."
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Why people commit fraud and continue down the path of fraud: “I think very few people wake up and decide that today is the day I’m going to misrepresent financial statements or book an arbitrary general journal entry to record revenue. That’s inappropriate. I think it sneaks up on somebody typically, and they start making smaller, inappropriate decisions. And then it’s hard to dig out of those decisions. And then they find themselves at a really significant inflection point, which is, do I raise my hand and acknowledge that this business is not performing the way I’ve been reporting to my board or my stakeholders and bite the bullet and deal with the consequences at that momentO r do I continue to perpetrate?”
Go to >
Stephen Griffin Front Row Seat S1E34 - Sport Lifestyle Network
In this episode of the SLN Podcast, John Peters is joined by Stephen Griffin, someone who’s never been afraid of the numbers. Stephen is a father, husband and worked his way up the corporate ladder as a trained accountant. Stephen eventually found himself helping private equity firms as a forensic accountant of sorts and would go on to work as a board member while helping diligence investment opportunities before ultimately becoming a private investor himself. Stephen later invested in Legacy Global Sports, one of the largest youth sports operators at the time. Legacy, who reportedly generated over $1MM / week in revenues, provided elite programming and events in youth soccer, hockey, lacrosse, and more. Today, Legacy is bankrupt and still under an ongoing criminal investigation by the DOJ. John spoke to Stephen about what went wrong...
✓ REPORT
Default threatens owners’ hold on Bell Bank Park
"The organization that built the $280 million, 320-acre youth and amateur sports complex known as Bell Bank Park in southeast Mesa is in default of its loan that covered the project. . ."
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