Posted by Bob Martin

The current General Manager for Spectra at the Cross Insurance Arena, formerly known as the Cumberland County Civic Center, is Matt Herpich. Matt was born in upstate New York, and graduated from Canandaigua Academy, then went on to receive his AS in Sports and Tourism Management from FLCC before graduating with his BS in Sports and Entertainment Management from USC. 

Throughout Matt’s career he has held many different roles with Spectra (formerly known as Global Spectrum) a management company headquartered in Philadelphia, PA. He began as an intern during his junior year at South Carolina, in the marketing department at the Colonial Life Arena, which lead to full-time employment during his final year at USC as the box office coordinator for the same venue.  Upon completion of his degree, Matt moved to Aiken, SC, a satellite University in the USC system, where he began as the events and Operations Manager and finished as the General Manager. Matt moved on to manage the Wolstein Center, a 14,000-seat venue and 10,000-sq. foot conference center at Cleveland State University. Matt was one of four Spectra managers presented to the Board of Trustees, of the CCRC during the transition in early 2015 – ultimately chosen to run the newly-renovated Portland venue – he relocated in March of 2015.

Spectra by Comcast Spectacor is a food, venue and sponsorship management company that has over 400 accounts in the US and Canada. In the northeast region, Spectra manages the CIC in Bangor, the LMA and Tsongas Center in Lowell, MA, the Mullins Center at UMASS Amherst, as well as venues in CT, RI, NJ, NY and PA. Spectra was brought in to manage the Cross Insurance Arena, when the Trustees and the County decided that after renovation, it was time to go from an in-house operation to an operation with regional, national and international resources. Spectra’s original term of the contract was three years, plus an additional two-year option for a term date of March 8th, 2020. However, with the introduction/purchase of a hockey team by Comcast Spectacor, the Spectra agreement has been extended to March 9th, 2025, with additional years at the option of both parties.

Matt and his wife, Rachel, (a New Jersey native) have settled on Pine Street in Portland’s west end. They enjoy the wonderful food scene here, finding many “go to” spots within walking distance of the arena and their home.