LEWISTON – Colisee General Manager Wayne Thornton abruptly resigned Tuesday afternoon, citing personal reasons.

City Administrator Jim Bennett would not discuss any specific events that led up to Thornton’s resignation.

Bennett suggested that Thornton had been criticized by hockey fans for his enforcement of new policies on beer sales and where fans could drink beer during games.

“We are going through some transitions down there, and there are some things we are being required to do, by both the (state) fire marshal and our own local fire department,” Bennett said.

Thornton and his staff were required to move people out of lobby areas during games, while construction work on the Colisee was continuing.

“We’ve had to keep moving people along, and some didn’t understand that,” Bennett said.

Thornton could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

Bennett said he had a plan to manage the ice arena in Thornton’s absence, but would need time to flesh it out.

“We’ll probably need 24 to 48 hours to figure out how to deal with this resignation in terms of management,” Bennett said.

The city took over ownership of the Colisee in February to keep the Lewiston Maineiacs, a semi-professional hockey team, in town. The team had complained of tardy renovations and problems with ticket machines, among other things. Control of the facility was given to a board of directors appointed by the City Council.

Thornton signed a three-year contract with the Colisee Board of Directors in June to manage and market the arena. He had recently begun to market the arena’s naming rights.

In June, Thornton said he had never managed a facility like the Colisee, despite a career in sports marketing and promotions. He had worked as a Boston Red Sox promotions director, a Secret Service agent and a sports marketing manager for Reebok International.

Thornton was paid $47,500 per year for the Colisee job. Bennett said he forfeited that salary when he resigned and broke the contract.

Assistant City Administrator Phil Nadeau will not take over for Thornton, Bennett said. Nadeau managed the Colisee before the board hired Thornton and has continued working as project director for the renovation.

“Right now, we need (Nadeau) monitoring the state Legislature,” Bennett said. “That’s where we need him involved. Clearly, I will not be reassigning Phil up there.”

A $2 million renovation of the arena is continuing. Plans call for adding a three-floor glass facade with a third-floor party room, second-floor concessions and first-floor offices.