With stadium construction on the front burner, stadium concessions service operator Centerplate has taken out a $215 million loan from GE Capital. The loan is refinancing a $115 million facility it had in place when it went public in December 2003. "We are doing this because we believe that by increasing capital, we'll be able to take advantage of the large stadium development proposals," said a Centerplate spokeswoman.
The company provides concessions at 133 sports facilities, including 10 National Football League stadiums and six Major League Baseball stadiums. With the ongoing chatter about potential new homes for the New York Jets and the Washington Nationals, she said the company wants to be in a position to be competitive. If neither deal goes through it would not necessarily have an effect on Centerplate's financing.
The facility consists of a five-year, $115 million revolver and a five-and-a-half-year $100 million term loan "B," which replaces a $50 million revolver and a $65 million term loan "B." Pricing is LIBOR plus 3 1/2% on both tranches. CIBC World Markets had led the IPO and the loan back in 2003 but the spokeswoman said the company considered a number of banks and chose GE for this facility.