Virginia Sports Hall of Fame Changes Business Model to Attract New Audiences and Become Financially Sustainable
February 27th, 2018
      Virginia Sports Hall of Fame

Since 1972, the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame has honored more than 320 legendary and predominantly Virginia-born coaches, players, administrators, journalists and other contributors to the games we love. A privately run organization, it took on a major financial responsibility when it opened a beautiful museum in Portsmouth in 2005.

Alas local and state subsidy declined dramatically, forcing the HOF board to make a painful decision in 2017 to sell the building and search for a more sustainable business model.

Fortunately leadership found one right in Hampton Roads, partnering with Virginia Beach’s popular mixed use Town Center to display its history and stage programs.  Rather than replicate a museum and its high operating costs, there is now “Walk the Hall,” a free pedestrian tour of exhibits in six different Town Center office and hotel towers.

In the Clark-Nexsen lobby is the Hall of Honor with the names of all past inductees. In the Armada Hoffler Tower is a tribute to college champions. In other structures, there are homages to golf and coaching greats and Virginians in national halls of fame. And in the Westin Hotel’s lobby is The Year in Sports, a wall full of photos snapped by some of the state’s leading press photographers.  At each stop is a QR code that takes visitors to a short video featuring a past inductee.  If you’re at the Beach this summer, take the self guided tour and then shop or eat at Town Center, a ten minute drive from the oceanfront.

Programming though is a central element of Virginia Sports Hall of Fame 2.0, and Town Center is replete with attractive venues.  Funny Bone Comedy Club has hosted two baseball themed programs, the Westin one on fantasy football. The annual induction on April 7, the Hall’s “Oscars,” will take place in the 1,300-seat Sandler Center for the Performing Arts. Rather than a seated dinner, guests will be encouraged to enjoy a meal and drinks in one of Town Center’s many restaurants before or after the ceremony.

The 2018 class, which has statewide reach, features two Virginia Tech coaches, football’s Frank Beamer and baseball’s Chuck Hartman, Hampton University and NBA star Rick Mahorn, UVA and NFL running back Thomas Jones, Chesapeake’s MLB outfielder Mike Cuddyer, basketball standouts Kara Lawson (WNBA) and Megan Silva Schultz (Randolph Macon) and Roanoke Times sportswriter Doug Doughty.

Sponsorships, memberships and ticket sales will ultimately cover the Hall’s lean budget, and companies ought to visit www.vasportshof.com to learn about opportunities or call (757) 800-1555.

For now the state is helping financially with the transition, pleased that the non-profit has taken creative steps to ensure its citizens will be able to celebrate achievement, both on and off the field of play.

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The Virginia Sports Hall of Fame is hosting programs throughout Town Center and Virginia Beach, including “Hoos on First” on February 5 at the Funny Bone Comedy Club. It featured three major leaguers, all who played at UVA, including Chris Taylor of the Dodgers and Mark Reynolds of the Colorado Rockies.
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Virginia Sports Hall of Fame President Eddie Webb along with leadership from the City of Virginia Beach unveiled Walk the Hall, a free pedestrian tour of exhibits and displays in several office and hotel lobbies at Virginia Beach Town Center. The Hall of Honor in the Clark-Nexsen Tower lists the names of more than 300 athletes, coaches and others who have been inducted into the Hall of Fame since 1972.
The event was a sellout. The HOF’s next big program is its 2018 Induction Ceremony on April 7 at the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts in Virginia Beach.
The event was a sellout. The HOF’s next big program is its 2018 Induction Ceremony on April 7 at the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts in Virginia Beach.