CEDAR CITY — Cedar City approved a $1 million agreement with Iron County to help fund the Diamond Z Arena expansion.
The Diamond Z Arena is located in the Cross Hollow Arenas at 11 S. Cross Hollow Road. The Cedar City Council approved the memorandum of understanding on April 10 to receive up to $1 million in grant funds from Iron County to expand the indoor, city-owned arena. The project is estimated to cost over $2 million across three phases.
The project would include expanding the arena to the south by about 105 by 230 feet, said arena manager Scott Christensen. The plan includes a banquet room, a warmup arena, bathrooms and a wash rack area, which will allow attendees to wash their horses and livestock.
According to the document included in the council packet, the money was generated by the Iron County Tourism, Recreation, Culture and Convention and Airport Facilities Tax, which is also known as the Restaurant Tax. These funds must be allocated toward tourism-related projects.
The city can invoice the county for 1/3 of the grant amount, approximately $333,333.33, for three years, beginning in 2024, according to the agreement.
Maria Twitchell, the executive director of Visit Cedar City-Brian Head, told the Iron County Commission in March that allocating the funding across three years would help the county maintain the Restaurant Tax budget.
“It would support the facility but also leave money in the fund to support other projects throughout the county,” she said.
While the tax board didn’t feel it was in the best interest of the county to get “bogged down” by a single project, they felt confident the arena expansion would be a “good use of tax funds,” Twitchell added.
The final invoice in 2026 must include documentation showing that the funds were spent on approved project expenditures. Additionally, the city must credit Iron County as a sponsor, recognizing its contributions to the project, according to the Memorandum of Understanding.
The city also received donations from several people, organizations and businesses for the project, including $500,000 from Jean Lopour and $100,000 from the Southwest Livestock Show, Christensen said.
Councilmember Robert Cox said he supports private-public partnerships on projects “where we have different governmental entities coming together and a bunch of private entities coming together to make the community better.”
The expansion is expected to increase visitor spending. According to the council packet, the American Horse Council conducted a study showing that four people visit an area per horse.
Based on the area’s demographics, the city calculated that 2.5 people would arrive per horse, with nonlocals spending an average of $145 per day and locals spending $42 per day, the packet states.
Overnight visitors to Iron County spend approximately $149 per day on lodging, meals, gas and other purchases, Twitchell told Cedar City News.
“As events are recruited and grow at the arena, particularly those that attract participants from outside of Iron County, we should see a positive impact on our tourism businesses,” she said in an email. “We are excited about the future expansion of Cross Hollows as it will certainly allow current arena events to grow plus attract larger events to the area, particularly at times of the year when we need additional tourism spending.”
Based on the city’s estimates, it could see an increase from several hundred thousand to several million in tourism dollars as additional events are booked in the arena following the expansion.
For instance, if the Rocky Mountain Reining Horse Association hosts four five-day events, the city could see nearly $2.7 million in tourism dollars. Or if the Senior Pro Rodeo Association hosts one four-day event, participants are estimated to spend nearly $300,000 in the area, according to the packet.
Various organizations have shown interest in booking the Diamond Z Arena once the expansion is completed for events, such as reptile shows, livestock shows, rodeos, winter festivals and more, the city reported.
Ed. note: The article was edited to clarify that Cedar City owns the arena and that the tax funds must be used for tourism-related projects.
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