Officials praise a recent rise in bookings at the Augusta-Richmond County Civic Center, but that doesn't mean the events are doing exceptionally well at the box office.

Just six of the dozens of events booked during the past year came close to being considered sold out, according to a report provided by civic center staff. That number is disappointing by Coliseum Authority Chairman Harry Moore's standards.

"I would like to see at least 60 percent of our shows sell out," he said.

None of the events - five held in the William B. Bell Auditorium or one in the civic center arena - filled the building to capacity. Instead, they came "as close as possible to being sellouts," according to the report.

An event can be considered sold out without filling the building because seating arrangements don't always match the maximum number of seats the building can accommodate, said Loretta Rau, the civic center's box office manager.

For example, comedian Ron White sold 2,508 tickets last August, short of the nearly 2,700 the Bell Auditorium seats, according to the report.

"All in all it's a sellout for us," she said.

On the other hand, Steve Harvey sold 2,337 tickets but was still listed on the sellout report. According to the event's promoter, it fell 300-400 tickets short of being sold out.

"They considered it sold out. But it was not sold out," said William McKinley of 3MC Production.

Other acts such as singer Allison Krauss or the annual Guitar Pull also didn't fill the Bell Auditorium to capacity, according to the report, but came close enough to being considered a sold-out show.

The local economy and an industrywide trend of climbing ticket prices could be to blame for the struggle to sell out shows, said Gary Bongiovanni, the editor-in-chief of industry magazine Pollstar.

Two other markets in the state similar to Augusta are split in terms of success. The Columbus Civic Center is hailing one of its best years in history for sold-out shows, said Robin Walker, director of marketing. Meanwhile, the Macon Centreplex has continued to struggle, having sold out no shows so far this year, said Larry Fortson, the director of the entertainment complex.

To remedy Augusta's ticket problem, Mr. Moore proposed the creation of a full-time staff member who focuses solely on promoting the building and the events booked there.

"I think it would make a big difference," he said.

Reach Justin Boron at (706) 823-3215 or justin.boron@augustachronicle.com.