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The Mecum Kissimmee auction annually showcases the entirety of Osceola Heritage Park, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary. PHOTO/OHP
Osceola Heritage Park hosts numerous events that drive the area economy, supporting local businesses and families. As a beacon of its success, its figures show the facility attracts around 750,000 visitors annually and generates more than $100 million in economic impact.
As OHP now celebrates its 20th anniversary, its leadership looked back on a sometimes-challenging journey to becoming a premier live sports and entertainment destination in the region.
Enter Robb Larson, OHP’s general manager who works with ASM Global and his staff to keep the complex buzzing with activity. He’s seen nearly every day of the journey, when he came to Osceola County from the professional basketball industry in Orlando in 2002 to take on OHP’s director of marketing and sales role, just prior to the opening of its brand new 10,000-capacity Silver Spurs Arena.
Now Larson leads the OHP organization with a team of more than 50 staff members. He remembers the early years of big dreams and an uncertain future for the venue.
Larson, who had worked in management at The Palace of Auburn Hills and the Bryce Jordan Center at Penn State, had a grand vision for OHP. “I wanted it to be The Palace of Auburn Hills,” he said, noting the Michigan arena was home to the Detroit Pistons and named the highest-grossing venue of its size in the country multiple times.
Others who joined Larson in those early days and are still with OHP two decades later include Mary Burd, assistant general manager and director of finance, and Calee S. Watson, director of booking and events services.
Larson and his team consider October 2003 as the official opening of Osceola Heritage Park as a completed complex, though Silver Spurs Arena opened its doors to the public on Sept. 26 with the Sesame Street Live touring show, the Exhibition Building (now known as the Events Center) had been hosting events since February of that same year, and the Osceola County Stadium had been there since 1984. October 2003 also saw the Silver Spurs Rodeo’s inaugural event in the new indoor arena. American rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd took the stage for the arena’s first ever concert the following month.
Those early days were not easy as OHP sought to find its identity. Tensions arose as to what the venue should be and what kind of acts and events should be booked. Some wanted to see the same bands and performers that played in larger arenas and other facilities in Orlando. It took time to figure out what kind of venue OHP was, Watson noted.
“As a building, there were some things we could do,” Watson said. Equipment and lighting required for many large touring acts placed too much of a load on the arena ceiling, which limited who could perform at Silver Spurs Arena.”
Larson recalled the time he drove his father from Tampa to Apopka. During the trip, they passed the Amway Center in Orlando. Looking at the facility’s size, along with the nearby hotels and towering buildings around the venue, it dawned on Larson: That’s not our competition.
At that moment, Larson thought of a quote from St. Francis de Sales: “Do not wish to be anything but what you are and try to be that perfectly.”
With that as a kind of guiding principle, the leadership team of OHP worked to bring in events appropriate for the venue and beneficial to the community. Some of those events that started two decades ago are still coming to OHP.
“The list is very long of clients who come here, then return year after year,” Larson said, noting Mecum Auctions has held 20 events at OHP and grown along with the facility.
The first Mecum car auction at OHP required just a couple tents. It registered a total attendance of 4,500 visitors during the two-day event. Today, Mecum takes up almost all of OHP’s 200 acres and welcomes 100,000 visitors over a 13-day auction featuring more than 4,000 auto consignments. Mecum Kissimmee at OHP is known as “The World’s Largest Collector Car Auction.”
And, in an unexpected twist, some of those soughtafter headlining acts who could not play in the arena still ended up at OHP playing concerts at the venue’s outdoor festival grounds.
One such festival, Country Thunder, returns to OHP Oct. 20-22. The lineup features headliners Cody Johnson, Hardy, and Keith Urban, plus numerous other country music luminaries.
Bringing a large outdoor festival to OHP was challenging, Larson recalled.
“That first one was a struggle, but it was part of the vision we had for our venue, so we worked tirelessly for a couple of years to get it,” he said. “Last year’s Country Thunder brought in tens of thousands of festival goers.” The team realized going after multi-day events that lead to people staying in hotels, eating at restaurants, and filling gas tanks would drive more local economic impact.
Several multi-day amateur athletic events are now mainstays at the venue. The FHSAA Wrestling State Championships brought almost 13,000 people to Osceola County for a threeday event this year.
One signature multi-day event scheduled each year represents the “Heritage” in OHP: The Silver Spurs Rodeo. The grounds where Silver Spurs Arena now sits was once an outdoor grandstand for the rodeo and the riding club for which the arena is named.
Heather Burns, event manager for the Silver Spurs Riding Club, served as the organization’s secretary when the county bought the land from the club to convert it into a sports and entertainment complex. For some members, the transition from an outdoor to indoor rodeo arena was difficult. For nearly 60 years, the Silver Spurs Rodeo events were always held outside. “We live in Florida; it can storm any time,” Burns said. “In the old times, if it rained, you had to stop.”
The Silver Spurs Riding Club expanded to three events a year: Boots, Bulls and Barrels plus two rodeos. Each event day typically sells out the 7,500- arena.
As OHP’s leadership continued refining its vision and focusing on customer service, the number of events and bookings steadily increased. In those formative early days, there might be 10 events a month, Watson said. “Today, it’s nonstop,” as ten or more events a week are not uncommon. On average OHP plans and manages 30 or more events each month. Often, multiple events are scheduled on the same day.
One recent weekend, the Jehovah’s Witnesses continued their multi-week convention at Silver Spurs Arena; the KVLS Pavilion held a hog sale; Orlando City B played a soccer game; an auto dealer held a selling event; and the Orlando Tattoo Show was running in the Events Center.
In November, the Orlando Magic’s NBA G-League Osceola Magic will begin play and add another 24 events, adding to Orlando City B’s 13 games and Orlando City’s year-round training.
“The beginning was challenging because of financial constraints,” Burd said.
“The Park has changed in great ways,” Burns said, expressing appreciation for the county making upgrades over the years to provide a better experience. “Every event here is growing because the county is growing. We are growing.”
“When the facility was built, different leaders wanted to see different things out here,” Watson said. “But you have to realize what the facility can do. What are we best at?”
County leaders have renewed the contract with ASM Global, the company that manages the venue, for an additional seven years until 2030.
“Our investment to develop and build Osceola Heritage Park is a great testament to the futureforward vision for our community,” said Osceola County Chairwoman Viviana Janer. “From celebrating our local heritage with rodeos and the County fair to setting the stage for large and diverse events that bring in visitors from all over the world, OHP has become a place that residents and visitors can call home.”
At the end of the day, OHP is devoted to enriching the lives of Central Florida residents and visitors and serving as an economic driver for the community. It’s a responsibility that has taken the team on an unexpected journey to success.
“Some of our wildest dreams are coming to fruition here,” Larson said. “The county leaders have supported our vision and how it fits into their vision for Osceola County. They know what they want for our county, and Osceola Heritage Park and ASM Global are part of that.”
To learn more about Osceola Heritage Park and the scheduled events, visit www.ohpark.com.
