Last October, city officials stood outside the Berglund Center and announced they were looking into the prospect of creating an “entertainment district,” the centerpiece of which would be a casino to be located at the center.
The entertainment district in general, and the casino in particular, was born out of the city’s quest for more tax revenues and, according to City Manager Valmarie Turner, a review of “overall assets, including the Berglund Center.”
Those words, however cryptic, suggest the city may not be completely satisfied with the center’s performance. The overall number of events booked at the Berglund (which encompasses four different venues, with the largest being the 10,000-seat coliseum portion) has increased from 250 per year in 2019-2020 to 400 per year, city officials say, but there are fewer big shows than in the past…