Sports Arena Employees Local 137 Retirement Fund

Sports Arena Employees Local 137 Retirement Fund

The Sports Arena Employees Local 137 Retirement Fund is a multiemployer defined benefit pension plan originally established to serve unionized workers at New York sports venues, including Madison Square Garden. The plan's participants were represented by Local 137, a labor union that historically organized ticket takers, ushers, and other arena staff. In 2015, Local 137 merged into Local 108 of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU/UFCW), which became the successor union for the fund's participants. The fund operates as a frozen defined benefit plan, meaning no new benefit accruals are being credited to participants. Investment strategy focuses on capital preservation and meeting existing pension liabilities through a mix of traditional fixed income, public equities, and real assets. The fund holds a position in the ARA Core Property Fund, a diversified core real estate vehicle spanning US mixed-use properties. The plan also filed a claim for Special Financial Assistance (SFA) under the American Rescue Plan Act to shore up its funding position — a program administered by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation for critically underfunded multiemployer plans. The fund is administered by Victoria Peterson-Mitchell, who oversees benefit distributions, actuarial reporting, and coordination with the successor union, RWDSU/UFCW Local 108, and the PBGC. The plan's small participant base and frozen status mean the investment program is calibrated for liability-driven runoff rather than growth. The fund's structural distinction is its frozen-liability posture paired with federal backstop dependency. Unlike active multiemployer plans that still receive contributions, the Local 137 fund is in terminal runoff — its investment decisions are shaped by PBGC SFA rules and the actuarial timeline for benefit payout, not by new participant accruals or union bargaining cycles.