Lake County Captains Complete Purchase of Naming Rights Agreement With the City of Eastlake for Classic Park

(EASTLAKE, OH) - Cascia, LLC, the holding company of the Lake County Captains Professional Baseball Club, class A affiliate of the Cleveland Indians, is proud to announce that it has completed a $4.2MM payment to the City of Eastlake as part of its 2005 purchase of rights to sell naming rights to the facility. The agreement also gave the Captains the rights to sell naming rights to the Lake Health Plaza and rights to sell advertising on the pedestrian bridge that crosses State Route 91 in front of the stadium.

The announcement was made in conjunction with Jim Brown of Classic Auto Group who, following the agreement in 2005, reached a 15-year agreement with Cascia, LLC to purchase naming rights and re-name the facility Classic Park.

"Since we opened our gates in April, 2003, our family ownership group has been proud to welcome more than 2.5 million fans to Classic Park to enjoy the Captains unique brand of affordable entertainment, while watching the Indians' future stars up close and personal," explained Captains majority owner Peter A. Carfagna. "We are proud of our signature Captains Reading Program, which annually welcomes more than 40,000 local children to the ballpark, and we are equally proud to have partnered with the City of Eastlake to host many community events at the stadium. Through our Captains Charities arm, we have sponsored hundreds of local fundraising events, including several in conjunction with the United Way of Lake County and other deserving charities throughout the region. These efforts have resulted in thousands of dollars in monetary donations, as well as thousands of ticket and event donations to local fundraising activities."

The Naming Rights payment brings Cascia's total direct contributions to Classic Park since the club's inception in 2003 to approximately $8.5MM, including over $6.5MM paid to the city of Eastlake in naming rights, annual rent, annual contributions to the Capital Fund, and fees for special events hosted by the Captains, and over $2MM invested in the scoreboard and concessions equipment. The City of Eastlake also receives a percentage of sales from advertising sold by the Captains on the pedestrian bridge outside Classic Park. Over the course of Cascia's 25-year-lease agreement at Classic Park, it will directly invest a total of over $15.5MM.

"Our naming rights partnership with the City of Eastlake and Jim Brown's Classic Auto Group represents the culmination of many years of collaborative effort, of which our fans, sponsors and local community should be very proud," Carfagna explained.

In addition, since 2003 the Captains have employed an estimated 200 full and part-time employees each year in Eastlake, generating thousands of dollars in payroll tax revenue for the City.

The City of Eastlake has also earned over $600,000 in gross parking revenues for vehicles that park in the city-owned lot across the street from Classic Park during events held at the facility since 2003. It also receives $3,600 in annual rent from LakeTran and the Lake County Visitor's Bureau. Both organizations have offices at Classic Park. When combining all of the payments over the course of Cascia's 25-year lease agreement, the City of Eastlake will receive a direct economic benefit of over $18.1MM.

Cascia has also paid approximately $460,000 in sales tax to the State of Ohio since 2003.

"The City of Eastlake is pleased that the naming rights agreement signed four years ago has come to a conclusion today", explained Eastlake Mayor Ted Andrzejewski. "We thank the Lake County Captains organization for fulfilling their commitment on the naming rights agreement with this $ 3.9MM check. The money will now be used to payoff a substantial amount of stadium debt and will ease the burden on our general fund. It will also allow the city to look at bringing back some services that will benefit the residents of Eastlake, whom we thank for supporting the facility during the last six years."

In addition to Captains baseball, Classic Park has truly been a community facility as it hosts several local high school and college games each year, bringing in additional revenue to the City of Eastlake. The ballpark has also hosted four major concerts since 2005, featuring music legends Bob Dylan, Def Leppard, Willie Nelson, Counting Crows and others. Classic Park is set to host is fifth major show on July 11 as The Bob Dylan Show makes a return, featuring Willie Nelson and John Mellencamp. The City receives 8% tax on ticket revenue for these events.

The Captains are proud to partner with the City of Eastlake for the next big community event taking place on July 4 as Classic Park hosts the annual free Eastlake Independence Fireworks Show that evening, featuring three local bands, several promotions and contests and fun for residents of our community. Mayor Andrzejewski has been instrumental in bringing the community fireworks show to Classic Park the last two years and has worked closely with the bands and local community groups on this family-friendly event. Residents are encouraged to arrive early as gates open at 7 PM and enjoy the fun and festivities prior to the area's largest July 4th fireworks spectacular!