CLEMSON — The city of Clemson and Clemson University are taking matters into their own hands, as their efforts to apply for a South Carolina Competitive Grant to purchase a new curtain system for Littlejohn Coliseum were unsuccessful.

Marty Kern, director of major events for Littlejohn Coliseum, told city council members Monday night that Clemson University will fund $300,000 through private donations and a loan and requested that the city fund the $100,000 it pledged in January. Council later gave its unanimous approval.

Initially, the city and university planned to allot matching funds of $100,000 each, with the city’s portion derived from the Local Option Accommodations Tax Fund, while seeking a state grant of $200,000.

“We are not deterred because it’s more than a curtain — it’s a showplace,” Kern said.

“It will put ‘heads in beds’ and people in restaurants and shops,” he added. “With the events it can generate, it will be a boon to the area and add to our collaboration with the city.”

Kern said a floor to the ceiling curtain system would allow for the creation of a showplace inside the arena, allowing the coliseum to “recreate itself” and compete with the BI-LO Center in Greenville, Colonial Center in Columbia and Bobcats Arena in Charlotte, N.C. that already have such a system. The return on such an investment, Kern pointed out, could be realized within two years.

Littlejohn Coliseum once served as a hotbed for major concerts during the 1970s and 80s, featuring major recording artists such as Billy Joel, Boston, Kansas and Barry Manilow, and in recent years, Bob Dylan and Hank Williams Jr.

But Kern said the coliseum has generated more these days on attracting artists that can bring in anywhere between 4,000-6,000 fans, and the lack of a curtain system has hampered those efforts.

“Empty seats don’t make people feel good and a lot of performers won’t perform in a venue without a curtain system,” she said. “A theatre curtain system will allow Clemson to compete to bring artists here.”

“They (artists) want to go to the venue that feels right, and the curtaining system impacts the number of events we can bring into the coliseum,” he added. “There aren’t many mega artists out there.”

Despite the inability to secure grant funding, Kern said action taken by the city and university ensures that the new curtain system can be installed for use in the fall.

Clemson Mayor Larry Abernathy said he is pleased at the foresight given to the project.

“I believe it will pay for itself many, many times over,” Abernathy said.