Tahoe Sports and Entertainment to amp up ice arena

By Jessie Marchesseau
It’s official. Tahoe Sports and Entertainment has moved in and taken over management of the South Lake Tahoe Ice Arena.
The company was awarded the contract by the South Lake Tahoe City Council back in July and assumed control of the facility in August. This is the first time the city has handed over management of one of its assets to a private firm, but with the ice arena losing close to $100,000 a year, the council agreed that something had to be done.

Tahoe Sports and Entertainment was chosen over three others vying for the contract. The company has agreed to a multi-year lease on the property and will pay the city $2,000 per month for the first year and increase its monthly payments after that.
Though Tahoe Sports and Entertainment does not have a background of specifically running ice arenas, founders Van Oleson of Stateline and Chris Cefalu of South Lake Tahoe do have a strong history of building successful businesses.
Cefalu, who has lived in South Lake Tahoe his entire life, runs multiple local establishments, including the Fox gas station. Oleson has a background in business development for Fortune 100 companies such as Macy’s and eBay.
Both Oleson and Cefalu have been actively involved in ice arena activities for years. They have helped with organization of youth hockey programs, camps, tournaments and the men’s league. The two began putting together a business plan for running and improving the facility about three years ago, long before the city was even thinking of outsourcing.
“We were looking for the right opportunity to present it to someone who would care,” Oleson said.
The years of planning paid off, and when the city council issued a request for proposals earlier this year, Oleson and Cefalu finally had their opportunity.
The team’s plans for the facility are focused on finding ways to reach out to the community, specifically through programs for girls’ hockey, multi-use events, and the concept of destination sports camps.
“No one was really featuring Tahoe; they were basically just selling ice,” Oleson said of the previous management approach. “Our approach is to really spell out the Tahoe identity and what that is and what that means and create programs around the Tahoe identity.”
One way Tahoe Sports and Entertainment plans to capitalize on the Tahoe identity is by developing multi-sport camps where athletes can come to train in more than one sport at a time, for example hockey and golf or soccer. The company is also looking into holding events such as indoor soccer tournaments and ski/snowboard rail jams in the arena, creating a tangible connection between the ice arena and a variety of sports.
With public interest in hockey growing rapidly in Phoenix and throughout California, and resort destinations such as Whistler and Jackson Hole turning out exceptional hockey teams, Tahoe Sports and Entertainment believes that South Lake Tahoe could have the opportunity to establish itself as a “center of excellence” in hockey.
Though the organization is just getting off the ground, there is no lack of enthusiasm for what is to come. Work is already being done improve the facility, and employees and athletes are jumping on board.
Whether it’s figure skating or hockey, camps or tournaments, the South Lake Tahoe Ice Arena is in for a serious makeover from a motivated crew, say Oleson and Cefalu. And if all goes according to plan the pair hopes the entire community will reap the benefits.