John Wentzell is a twenty-three year veteran of the sports, entertainment and facilities management industry with executive leadership roles spanning arenas, convention centers and professional sports.
Named President of TD Banknorth Garden in 2005, Wentzell leads and operates the19,600-seat facility, one of North America’s most active, highly regarded and successful venues as well as oversees numerous business aspects of it’s sister company the Boston Bruins and the company’s real estate development interests adjacent to the Garden. The Garden, home to both the NHL’s Boston Bruins and NBA’s Boston Celtics, is owned and operated by Delaware North Companies, one of the largest privately held companies in the United States and a global leader in hospitality and entertainment.
Wentzell began his career as the Director of Group Sales and then Director of Marketing at the Providence Civic Center Complex in 1984 after earning his masters in Sports & Facility Management from University of Massachusetts (he also holds a bachelor degree from Otterbein College in Westerville, OH). After a short career stop in Philadelphia as Director of Marketing for the Philadelphia Civic Center, he returned to Providence to be named Executive Director of the Providence Civic Center in 1986.
In 1990, he moved from managing arenas to convention center management when he joined Spectacor Management Group (SMG) and became General Manager of the Greater Ft. Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center and led the final design, construction and opening of the facility. In 1992, Wentzell moved on to the Spectacor Management Group-managed Worcester Centrum where as General Manager he oversaw SMG’s diverse business interests including the15,000 seat Centrum, 3,800 seat Worcester Memorial Auditorium and Theater and the development, design and project coordination of the Centrum Centre Convention Complex.
In 1996, Wentzell once again departed the arena management side of the industry, this time for professional sports, when he became the Executive Vice President/Chief Operating Officer for the Philadelphia Phantoms, the Flyers new American Hockey League affiliate. He joined Delaware North Companies (and the then FleetCenter) as Vice President of Operations in 1997 and was promoted to Senior Vice President/General Manager of the company in 2000. From that post, Wentzell served as chief operating officer of the Garden. In that role, he developed and implemented strategic plans for long-term growth and profitability of the company’s Boston operations. Wentzell played an instrumental role in attracting and staging the 2004 Democratic National Convention, which was hosted in Boston at the then FleetCenter.
As President, Wentzell leads the TD Banknorth Garden as it seeks to grow its world-class status and remain one of the industry’s innovators in the areas of service, premium seating, fan experience and revenue generation.
Wentzell is currently on the Board of Directors for the Sports Museum of New England, the Massachusetts Sports and Entertainment Commission, the Boston Municipal Research Bureau and affiliated with numerous local not-for-profit organizations.
MODERATOR
Charles Wu is a Managing Director and founding partner of BayNorth Capital, a private real estate investment firm. The BayNorth team has invested approximately $2.2 billion of capital for six distinct funds. BayNorth currently manages approximately $1 billion of equity assets through equity, participating debt, joint ventures, land acquisitions and partnerships. BayNorth Capital recently raised Fund VII, a $475 million discretionary pool of capital.
Prior to co-founding BayNorth Capital in July 2004, Charlie co-founded the private equity firm Charlesbank Capital Partners in July 1998 and was a Managing Director of its predecessor firm, Harvard Private Capital Group, the private equity and real estate investment unit of Harvard Management Company. Before joining Harvard Private Capital in 1995, Charlie spent ten years at Aldrich Eastman and Waltch, where he directed the restructuring group and was a portfolio manager. Prior to AEW, Charlie worked at Morgan Stanley in their corporate finance department.
Charlie has an MBA, with distinction, and a BA, magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Harvard University. Charlie serves on the Board of the Rose Kennedy Greenway Conservancy and is an Overseer of the Newton-Wellesley Hospital. Charlie is a past President of the Newton Schools Foundation and has chaired Boston Mayor Menino’s Economic Advisory Board. He was recently appointed to the faculty of the Harvard Business School.
