ST. LOUIS — For nearly 30 years, The Dome at America's Center has been one of the top entertainment venues in St. Louis.
The downtown, 67,000 seat stadium attracts big sports events, concerts and conventions.
"The Dome has been operating and receiving events and doing well. I was just in the Dome last week for a meeting and it needs the maintenance," said the Reverend Earl Nance, Jr.
Nance is the chairman of the St. Louis Regional Convention and Sports Complex Authority.
The RSA owns The Dome, which Nance says will soon need a multi-million dollar makeover.
"The Dome has needed these repairs I'd say for about the last two, three years. It's evident that we need them," Nance said.
In a 57-page report, Nance and his 10-member board say the Dome's LED lighting, scoreboards and elevators all need upgrading.
They also say the multipurpose facility will eventually need a new roof.
"It's a matter of staying on top. We're gonna have to do that, but we're gonna also have some reserves and have some left over. Yes, it's preventative maintenance," added Reverend Nance.
Expensive "maintenance" the RSA will pay for by using a bulk of the $70 million it received the NFL Rams Settlement money last year.
However, Reverend Nance says they'll need an additional $155 million investment over a decade to complete the upgrades.
"We've been funded by the state, the city and county, so there's going to have be some renewed talks soon.
Of course, concert and sports fans have plenty to say when it comes to Dome-related dollars and sprucing up the popular venue.
"The Dome, man, is a landmark. I think the upgrades are necessary," said Cardinals fan Kelly Smith, who spoke with 5 On Your Side near Busch Stadium.
"Well, that sounds like an awful lot of money to me. I don't know how much it costs to repair The Dome, but I think that maybe they should just use that 70 million to the do the most important things," said Cards Fan Kelly Kohrmann.
"I'm optimistic about funding from the city and the county. The state is a tougher nut to crack because we've almost had to pull teeth to get money from the state. The repairs and upgrades are not dire, but it's a matter of catching it before it gets dire," said Nance.
A spokesman for St. Louis County said while they support The Dome, "right now the county does not have any additional funding for future upgrades or repairs at the venue."
A spokesman for St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones said the "R.S.A. has not asked the city for any money for the Dome and we have had no discussions about providing public funding for it."