The Story of HHA and KBA
HHA established
HHA becomes a recognized 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation
Memorandum of Understanding between City of Homer and HHA for a facility on HEA property which would be paid for by the City but operating funds from HHA. Several possible building ideas were juggled, including installing an old aircraft hangar on site (building was found to be very substandard and building site required extensive dirt work and fill raising the costs) and an inflatable building (City opposed the structure and voted against).
English Bay Corporation approaches HHA regarding spit property it has available for a structure; City of Homer dissolves the Memorandum of Understanding as English Bay does not want to sell the underlying property.
HHA signs Lease with Homer Spit Properties, LLC for rink. Base term of Lease was 10 years, with renewal terms of 5 years each (2 renewal terms only). Minimum rent was $7,000/month, plus 5% of gross revenues, plus payment of all maintenance, repairs, liabilities and costs and expenses (included property taxes assessed). During the renewal terms the Fair Market Rental Rate would be the minimum rent due, plus 5% gross revenues, etc. HHA consistently did not have enough funds to pay the property taxes assessed so those amounts were paid by HSP and added to debt owed.
HHA opens the Kevin Bell Arena
Arctic Winter Games in Homer
HHA negotiates with HSP to purchase the building only and thereby receive a community interest exemption because of its non-profit status. English Bay Corporation is a Business corporation and Homer Spit Properties is a limited liability company, neither of which is able to receive any exemption. HHA will continue to lease the underlying property. Price of purchase is $2,240,000.00 plus interest at 4.25% for first five years. Interest only payments the first 5 years of $7,9333.33/month. Beginning September 2013 interest to increase to 6% and monthly payments of principal and interest increase to $14,429.01 (double previous payments). All due and payable August 2038. Base term of the lease is 30 years, rent $1/month, rent is supposed to be adjusted after the first 5 years based on market value of leased premises multiplied by .5/12. HHA would also have to pay all operating costs, liabilities, maintenance, expenses. It is unknown if HSP is going to invoke this provision as there was no appraiser selected to value the property (without a structure).
HHA signs a Deed of Trust Modification agreement allowing HHA to continue paying interest only payments of 5% on the principal until September 30, 2015; monthly payments are now approximately $8,100.00. Beginning on September 30, 2015 the monthly payments will increase to $14,429.01, which includes principal and interest at 6%, and monthly payments will continue until August 31, 2038 at which time all remaining amounts of principal and interest will be due (final payment would have to be $313,012.77).
HHA and HSP re-negotiate the existing note and re-amortize the remaining principal balance of $2,194,110.11 over 30 years at 4% fixed rate of interest over the term. Fully amortized, this new arrangement increased payments to $10,477.69 monthly for the life of the loan. The underlying lease is still in effect at $1/month, HSP has the right to invoke an adjustment based on current market value, however they have chosen not to for the time being.
OUR NAMESAKE
In 1992, the late Kevin Bell and an enthusiastic group of hockey devotees obtained some used dasher boards, skates and a few sticks to create a makeshift ice rink on the tennis courts behind the Homer Middle School. The community support for this endeavor was evident from the beginning, as dozens of businesses and individuals donated money, time and equipment to move and install the used boards from Anchorage to Homer. Eventually, heated huts, end-zone fencing and other upgrades were also added, all through volunteer efforts and funding.
Two of Bell’s greatest loves were hockey and the community of Homer.
As the community began to recognize the value of having a new winter activity that appealed to both youth and adults, the number of hockey enthusiasts continued to grow. In 1996, the Homer Hockey Association (HHA) was organized under the auspices of USA Hockey to provide youth hockey programs for all ages.
Skating continued at the middle school rink until the late 1990s when the unpredictable winter weather patterns began changing from freezing conditions to warmer temperatures, making it impossible to consistently have skating ice available for the various teams. Still, the community’s new infatuation with the sport could not be dampened, as determined teams began to travel 85 miles north to Kenai for weekly practices and games. The Kenai rink became their “home” ice.
The inconvenience and expense associated with traveling to Kenai every week quickly motivated Bell and others involved in Homer’s new hockey scene to investigate the possibility of building an enclosed facility with a roof that would insulate refrigerated ice. Volunteers secured a lease on a Homer Electric Association-owned parcel of land in downtown Homer, building designs were drawn, soil samples were tested and a height variance was sought from the Homer City Council. Through a great deal of community-wide volunteer effort, including raising thousands of dollars from local residents and businesses, the testing and design were completed and Homer’s first ice rink became closer and closer to becoming a reality—until the entire deal fell through.
Just when HHA thought all hope was lost, English Bay Corporation stepped in and offered to build a facility on its property located on the Homer Spit. The agreement stipulated that they would build the structure and lease it back to HHA at less than market value through a long-term lease. HHA secured grant funds to purchase and install all of the mechanical components of the refrigeration system and all of the finish work on the interior, costing HHA $1.2 million.
Thanks to Bell’s unwavering vision, drive and tenacity, the effort was a success. HHA acquired the necessary funds through grants from the Rasmuson Foundation, the Murdock Charitable Trust, Wells Fargo, Homer Foundation, Kachemak City, and the Arctic Winter Games legacy program. There was also overwhelming community support that included various in-kind donations, pledges and agreements to purchase advertising in the rink. The 30,000 square-foot Homer Ice Rink—now the Kevin Bell Arena—opened in spring 2005 and since then has operated September through April, closing for the four-month summer season due to cost of utilities and lack of demand from user groups during Homer’s peak tourism season.
Two of Bell’s greatest loves were hockey and the community of Homer. Today, there are countless memories of him teaching children and their parents to skate—even if it meant lending or buying them the gear—to build enthusiasm for a sport he had seen involve and excite youth and adults. On January 7, 2008, Bell died after a yearlong battle with brain cancer. As a co-founder of the facility and the person primarily responsible for making the rink a reality, in his honor, on March 29, 2008, the facility was dedicated in his memory, officially branding the facility as the Kevin Bell Arena.
