BLOOMINGTON -- Attendance at U.S. Cellular Coliseum in May reached near-record levels, but the venue still operated at a $74, 660 loss at the beginning of its fourth fiscal year.

Total attendance hit 43,132 in May, led by a Jehovah's Witnesses convention (19,500) and a World Wrestling Entertainment event (6,270), according to the monthly report released to the media on Thursday.

But ticket sales struggled for the Drake Bell concert, the report said. The Disney Channel star's concert drew 1,415.

"May was a very busy month for us with the first of four Jehovah Witness Conventions, two high school graduations and four ticketed shows," Coliseum general manager Bart Rogers said in the report. "Although the two concerts did not perform well at the box office, over 43,000 people attended events at the U.S. Cellular Coliseum this month, which generated close to $2 million of economic impact to our local economy."

By comparison, May 2008 (FY2) saw a total attendance of 40,881. May 2007 (FY1) saw 23,306. It appears only July 2008 - 52,928, helped by two Jehovah's Witnesses conventions - saw a higher attendance total than May 2009.

May, the first month of the venue's fourth fiscal year, saw an operating loss of $74,660. The venue saw an operating loss of $159,781 in May 2008 (FY3).

The U.S. Cellular Coliseum posted an almost $440,000 operating loss at the end of its third fiscal year.