The Athens Rock Lobsters professional hockey team was all set to drop the puck last Thursday.
Instead, The Classic Center Authority, Athens-Clarke County Unified Government, and general contractor JE Dunn Construction dropped the ball when the team’s brand-new Akins Ford Arena home in downtown Athens failed a last-minute inspection by the Athens-Clarke County Fire Department.
Just hours before the long-scheduled home opener for the new Federal Prospects Hockey League (FPHL) franchise — which also would have been the inaugural event for the 5,500-seat venue — the arena’s owners, operators, and builder issued a joint press release stating they “were unable to provide a trouble-free fire panel and as such the fire marshal was unable to provide a certificate of occupancy.”
“To have to turn away a sold-out crowd and postpone what was to be a defining moment for our organization and the city of Athens is heartbreaking,” team Vice President Scott Hull said in a released statement. “This delay doesn’t just affect our operations; it compromises the trust we’ve worked so hard to build with our community. With almost half the season now impacted, the implications of this delay are deeply troubling.”
An official team response on Thursday called the indefinite postponement by the arena owners “an enormous disappointment for our organization, our players, and, most importantly, our fans.
“We placed our trust in the promises made regarding the completion of Akins Ford Arena. To see this delay impact our ability to deliver on our vision for hockey in Athens is incredibly disheartening,” the team statement continued. “We were ready to make history tonight, and instead, we are left with unanswered questions and unfulfilled promises.”
On Monday, Athens-Clarke County Fire Marshal and Battalion Chief Rick Vaughn said work was continuing to ensure the building’s fire alarm system is fully functioning and up to code.
“Normally, with projects this size, there’s just a lot of devices, so we’ve got to test all of that, make sure we see where we’re at, and see what we need to do to be able to have an event in this venue safely. That’s our main concern and The Classic Center’s main concern,” Vaughn said.
Vaughn also confirmed to The Eatonton Messenger that a fire system and alarm inspection normally would have been scheduled well before the building’s first occupancy; however, ongoing issues with the fire systems postponed the inspection.
“It might not be a week before, but I mean several days before, we like to try to get in there and get that tested out to see if we are going to be having any issues or what can be addressed, what cannot be addressed,” Vaughn said. “But it just did not work out. It was not ready to test all the way up until Friday afternoon.”
According to Rock Lobsters’ management and team operatives, however, the failure followed repeated assurances from The Classic Center that all systems were “go” as opening day loomed — until they weren’t.
Originally planned for a late-October opening, which would have coincided with the start of the FPHL season a week or two earlier, the Rock Lobsters were instead forced to begin their inaugural campaign strictly playing away games.
After playing 11 games on the road to start their season, the team briefly ranked first in the standings. However, the Lobsters recently dropped to sixth in their division while waiting for their icy home to be completed as other FPHL teams continued playing games and accruing points.
The Rock Lobsters were scheduled to play the Blue Ridge Bobcats at 7 p.m. on Thursday. The Bobcats were about an hour away from Athens when they learned of the inspection failure and turned around to head back home to Wytheville, Va.
Fans, too, were caught off guard by the sudden cancellation. Almost immediately, online forums filled up with comments accusing the team of knowing the arena would not be ready for its scheduled debut. Several took to social media, blasting Rock Lobsters’ management for wasting time, money, and trust.
“I’m sure it was very obvious that y’all weren’t going to have the arena finished by this weekend,” Facebook user Dave Jay wrote on the team’s official page. “I’d bet good money it was to maximize ticket sales, then pull the rug out from under us last second after getting our money … Talk about making a terrible first impression.”
Another Facebook poster, Courtney Miller, said she had driven from Pennsylvania just to catch the Lobsters’ debut. She lamented online about the lost cost of time, fuel, food, and accommodations in Athens, in addition to the suddenly canceled ticket.
“This is absolutely disgusting,” Miller declared online.
Britton Briley, owner of Ghost Brands, which handles promotions and publicity for the Rock Lobsters, understands the need for fire safety and the fans’ frustration. However, he said that The Classic Center Authority and JE Dunn Construction should have been more transparent about facing delays.
“We asked them repeatedly in the weeks leading up to Dec. 6 if everything was on schedule, and they always said it was,” Briley said. “We were even asking last week, so when they told us not to worry, we were just excited about finally getting going in our own new home.”
Briley said his promotions team did a full rehearsal in the arena last Wednesday night, just 24 hours before the Rock Lobsters were scheduled to take home ice for the first time, going over all pre-game, between periods, and post-game procedures.
“We were so pumped up,” he said. “Now, it just feels like the rug was pulled out from under us. I mean, obviously, we know we need fire safety systems to be in order; it just sucks that it had to be us that had to make this announcement.”
The Classic Center issued a press release on Monday stating Akins Ford Arena would officially open this Friday — “pending the necessary certifications, which are expected Thursday, Dec. 12th” — for the Rock Lobsters to host the Mississippi Seawolves at 7 p.m.
A ribbon-cutting kickoff party with live music, player introductions, and drinks specials is scheduled to begin at 4:45 p.m. on the plaza outside the arena’s main doors.
Original tickets to the Dec. 6 Rock Lobsters game will automatically apply to the new date, Dec. 13, with no action required. Fans unable to attend the rescheduled date may request a refund by emailing ticketing@AkinsFordArena.com before Thursday, Dec. 12, at 11:59 p.m.
Ticket holders should retain all tickets to the superseded Dec. 7 and Dec. 12 games. Those original purchases will be valid for yet-to-be-determined dates but to be announced as soon as possible.