That it is taking so long to decide which direction makes most sense for the Dunkin’ Donuts Center’s future – a $58 million renovation that would connect it via a walkway to the neighboring convention center or a scaled-back $38 million upgrade – is perplexing.
To us, the answer is obvious.
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Providence deserves a first-class sports and entertainment facility, which the Providence Civic Center was when it first opened.
The 1970s and 1980s were good times for the building, marked by exciting Providence College and NCAA Tournament basketball games and shows like the Ice Capades and the circus. There were also sold-out concerts by Bruce Springsteen, U2 and others.
The last decade has been less kind.
There are still exciting PC basketball games, but the NCAA Tournament no longer stops here. In general, concerts have shifted to other venues like the Tweeter Center or Gillette Stadium.
Patrons are also spending more of their time and money on other forms of entertainment, notably at two full-scale gambling casinos.
This decade brings new opportunities for what has become affectionately known as The Dunk.
All around it, the Providence renaissance has restarted. Hundreds of hotel rooms will come on line over the next couple of years as several projects come to fruition. Also, hundreds of new luxury apartments and condominiums are set to open.
A refurbished, modern Dunkin’ Donuts Center would be another powerful selling tool for those marketing Providence to convention-goers.
Much has been made of the debt that would incur with the renovation and the fact that the building has been losing money over the years. But sports and entertainment centers such as this one do not have to make money to be deemed a success. The idea of such a building is for it to bring people in large numbers into the city where they in turn will spend money at restaurants, bars, hotels and retail stores.
If you have been to the Dunkin’ Donuts Center when it is sold out – whether it be a PC vs. Syracuse basketball game or for a professional wrestling show – then you know that on those nights the city buzzes.
We would like to see the state’s Convention Center Authority take over the Dunkin’ Donuts Center and spend the $58 million to renovate the old building into a first-class facility, connected to the convention center. That simple connection will allow the city to attract more and bigger conventions.
We hope all of this happens quickly. The city needs to get out of the way. It is losing money on the building and without the convention center connection and major rehab, its prospect for stopping the financial bleeding is bleak.
