Smith Pushing OCA to the Finish Line

In Northwest Arkansas during the last decade, there’ve always been whispers of what’s coming next.

A few years ago, a NASCAR track was in the works for a spot just across the Missouri border.

Another proposition included a new sports arena in or near Bentonville with the end goal of attracting a WNBA franchise. A professional basketball team based in Bentonville would join a league with franchises across the country including New York, Houston and Los Angeles.

Those aspirations, predictably, never panned out. Just wild ideas that served better as water cooler fodder.

Greg Smith had a wild idea, too. Build an outdoor music venue tucked away among the hills and valleys of southwestern Benton County – where he owns 660 acres – that would attract world-class artists.

Smith’s wild idea, though, varies dramatically from the fate of those other pie-in-the-sky propositions.

Despite a few early missteps that prompted scrutiny, and detractors who seem to revel in pooh-poohing the idea, Smith can see the Osage Creek Amphitheatre nearing the finish line.

Seeing the project to fruition has been a daunting task for Smith, who had no choice but to cancel a June 3 event with Willie Nelson that was to serve as the OCA’s coming-out party.

The bulk of the blame for that can be placed on historic snow and rain events in Northwest Arkansas in February and April, respectively, that put development way behind.

But in reality, considering ground was broken in October, Smith said construction progress is “way down the road.”

Anywhere from 30 to 50 men work at the 72-acre site on a given day. More than 600,000 yards of earth has been moved. Roughly 15 miles of conduit has been placed.

Concrete for the stage and pit has been poured and the steel is going up. The stage – built where a pond, since drained, used to be – has load-in, load-out capability for 10 semi trucks at once.

“Most venues [have the capability for] two, four or six trucks at one time,” Smith said. “We have 10. There isn’t an artist or roadie out there that doesn’t appreciate the ease of being able to do 10 trucks at once.”

Almost all of the 5,000 chairback Camatic seats – the same brand used at the new Cowboys Stadium, the Sydney Opera House and Centre Court at Wimbledon – have been bolted in.

One visit and you can ditch any thoughts that this plan is tomfoolery and easily see a place that could host, say, Tom Petty.

“I can understand the pessimistic attitude,” Smith said recently. “What I hear is ‘Talk to us when it’s finished.’ Well, I think it’s very apparent now that this is going to be built.”

 

Full-Bore Next Season

Smith, 46, first presented his plan for OCA to the Benton County Planning Board in 2004. It was approved – and, because of revisions to the site plan, was approved again in 2008 and a third time earlier this month.

As it currently stands, here’s what Smith and his three partners – Little Rock attorney Matt Warner, Rogers executive Cameron Smith (no relation) and Geoff Dunbar of Colorado – are sitting on.

The OCA will be operating at full-bore not this season but next, beginning in the spring. Phase I of the development, however, is expected to be done in time for at least one event by September.

“We absolutely can achieve [completion of] Phase I by then,” Smith said. “[Next year] we fully expect to have a full season.”

Whether that’s a rescheduling of the Nelson gig or another artist, the principals are tight-lipped.

Those who did purchase a ticket for the June 3 concert, Smith assured, will ultimately get value for their purchase – whether that’s with a rescheduled show or with a refund through the website osagecreeklive.com.

Phase I development includes seating for 12,000, the stage and finishing the majority of the infrastructure work on and around the venue.

The seating figure includes the chairback seats as well as 60, eight-seat boxes. The price to lease a box each season is $4,000. Box owners will pay $100 per occupied seat for each event going forward.

Twenty-two of the boxes have been spoken for, Smith said.

“Reports about seating have been all over the board,” Smith said. “We like to cap it at 12,000. That’s a very good number industry-wise. In a market that is somewhat unproven, we’re not going to plan on selling 18,000 tickets. I think 12,000 is realistic and that is where the cap needs to be.”

Phase II finish-outs include permanent infrastructure for restrooms and concessions, as well as a helicopter pad.

“The main purpose for that is for Life Flight access,” Smith said. “But there are also artists that like to fly in and make an entrance that way. So it serves both purposes.”

The necessary paving for roads in and out of the venue – 15004 Logan Cave Road near Tontitown on the map but with a Siloam Springs mailing address – is expected to be finished by the end of July. Smith and Benton and Washington counties are sharing the expense for that, though Smith is paying for the asphalt topping. The road base is coming from displaced materials (rock, red dirt) from the venue site.

Appraisal for the project, Smith said, is $5.4 million. To this point, development has been entirely financed by private investors.

 

Getting Plugged In

What is interesting about the leadership group of OCA is the relationship dynamic of the four men.

Warner has known Greg Smith for several years, so his involvement is easy to trace.

Dunbar and Cameron Smith? Complete strangers to the developer before, in each instance, mutual friends brought them together to discuss the project.

That’s a strong indication of how easy it is to buy into Smith’s vision for the OCA.

“He’s not over-promising and under-delivering,” Cameron Smith said. “I know this is going to happen and be a winner. Yeah, it’s a little bit of a risk but the fear of failure is the ultimate motivator. I refuse to fail at this. I’ve not failed yet in this town and I’m not going to start now.”

Dunbar gives the group a significant in-road on the promotions side, having been involved with the first nine Farm Aid concerts.

Smith is as plugged in as anybody in Northwest Arkansas. He heads up Cameron Smith & Associates in Rogers, the dominant executive-search firm for Walmart suppliers.

He had no preconceived notion before hearing his first pitch from Greg Smith earlier this year, “because I had never heard about the project. To be honest, I like to think of myself as a person that knows what’s going on. I had heard some rumblings that someone was doing something, but that was it.”

Fast-forward three months and the two Smiths form a potent punch for the OCA. While Greg Smith works behind the scenes to get the venue built, Cameron Smith has a whole world of connections he can keep apprised of the venue’s progress.

“Getting Cameron involved was crucial,” Smith said. “He’s very socially connected in the area and he is perfect for what we are doing. It brings a lot to the table and I’m honored that he’s part of the ballgame.”

 

Venue for the People

Greg Smith said he’s always had a love for live entertainment and music. That’s confirmed by the fact he’s seen Mötley Crüe perform 30 times.

That’s an interesting fact about a pretty interesting man. But it’s not revealed to give any sort of indication about the types of artists audiences can expect once the OCA gets rolling.

“Here’s the bottom line on that,” Smith said. “It’s not about who I want to see, it’s about who sells tickets and about the venue being here for the region. It’s whoever the people want to see.”

Smith’s aim is to provide promoters and booking agents with a venue that’s heavy on scenery, perks – waitresses will serve customers in the premium seats – and diversity. Country, rock, and bluegrass artists – they’re all in play. Christian festivals and revivals? They are, too.

“I have been approached by a pastor in Branson about a week-long revival here in September,” Smith said.

Whatever the event, studies done by the Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas – headed up by the department chair of marketing and transportation Dub Ashton – indicate an overwhelmingly positive response for the OCA project.

Market research results released in April 2009 found that 94 percent of 658 respondents within a 35-mile radius of Tontitown expressed an interest in having a pavilion-type venue in Northwest Arkansas.

Roughly the same percentage were of the opinion that an outdoor performance venue would benefit the economy.

“Overall, all respondents seemingly support an outdoor pavilion in the Northwest Arkansas region,” the summary concluded. “We strongly recommend construction of this venue in the Tontitown area.”

In other words, the saying made famous by a famous movie is true – build it and they will come.

And that’s the idea Smith had nearly a decade ago. For a man who is used to moving fast in a lot of different directions, the snail’s pace has been frustrating.

But at the same time, the journey has been worth it.

“There are some dues you have to pay to appreciate the final outcome,” Smith said. “Hopefully this is an everlasting addition to Northwest Arkansas. I look forward to sharing it with everybody.”