There is a new Arena Betwon the nba and charlotte

i just sow it on Wbtv it a 25years deal but the team can leav after 20years if they cant make cash the both the city and the NBA will vote on Nov11 overall i thinks this a very good deal for charlotte

 

City leaders present details of new arena agreement
10/31/2002

By CANDI JOYNER / nbc6.com


An agreement was reached between Charlotte leaders and the NBA to build a new arena in Uptown.

City staffers presented the agreement to the Economic Development Committee Thursday afternoon. Under the new deal, Charlotte's new arena must meet standards set by the NBA.

The same architect who designed arenas in Indianapolis and San Antonio will design Charlotte’s new arena.

The city council still needs to approve the 25-year deal. The vote is scheduled for November 18.

A new ownership group will be named by January 12

 

good job dukey.

Arena will be in 1st ward, plans revealed to council.

 

i have to wonder why NBC6 was the only to say the vote for new arena is going to be on the Nov18

 

Dukie, I have been noticing your typing is getting alot better. How did you do it? Also what exactly is the are where they are proposing the new arena. I used to live in Charlotte but not in the downtown area. Is the area on the opposite side of "up"town as Panther stadium? Near Discovery Place and main library?

 

it a done deal now the city just have to vote and 20042005 season they will be a new team in town
Deal OK with NBA owners
Expansion team would have 25-year lease at arena
RICK BONNELL AND SCOTT DODD
Staff Writers







NBA owners have already approved a sweeping agreement with Charlotte that would house an expansion team in a new uptown arena for at least 20 years.

City Council members are expected to vote on the 36-page document Nov. 11. NBA deputy commissioner Russ Granik told The Observer on Thursday that owners gave their approval at a meeting Oct. 8, based on a general outline.

"Now we go on to the next step" of choosing an ownership group, Granik said. "This is a fair deal for both the league and the city, but one that should be attractive to a purchaser."

If the city OKs the agreement, only a few major steps remain before the NBA's return to Charlotte is finalized.

"All the big parameters are done," said Charlotte city attorney Mac McCarley. "We're at the details now."

Under terms of the deal, the NBA would have to choose owners and award the franchise by Jan. 12, when the city and league are scheduled to approve a final contract. But city officials hope the league moves more quickly.

They're concerned because options to buy some of the land for the arena expire Dec. 15. They're also scheduled to spend $2 million in development costs by the end of the year to stay on track for opening the new building by October 2005.

The city and NBA arrived at a tentative deal last month -- before the Oct. 8 owners' meeting in New York -- but spent the past three weeks fleshing out details, expanding the agreement from half a dozen or so pages to 36.

Those negotiations ended Wednesday, and city officials unveiled the deal Thursday to a key City Council committee.

The team would pay no rent under the deal. Instead of a landlord-tenant lease, as the city had with the Hornets, this deal works as an operating agreement, McCarley said, splitting up the obligations between both parties.

Under terms of the agreement:

• The team would sign a 25-year lease to play in an arena built by the city, with an option to play an additional five years beyond that. The team could break that lease after 20 years if it demonstrated extreme financial distress.

• The team's contribution to building the arena would be $23.2 million, paid over 10 years. That would help pay back Bank of America and Wachovia for underwriting some of the costs.

• The city would complete construction in time to open in October 2005. The team would operate the building, receive revenues from events and be responsible for any costs and potential losses. Experts anticipate the cost of operating the arena would run about $10 million a year.

• The team would debut in the 2004-05 season, playing initially in the Charlotte Coliseum under terms similar to past deals with the Hornets, who moved to New Orleans earlier this year.

• The Charlotte Coliseum Authority, which operates the current Coliseum, would retain a limited role in the new building, providing food and beverage service as well as other duties, including maintenance.

• As operator of the building, the team would be obligated to pursue events such as the ACC and CIAA men's basketball tournaments -- events that traditionally don't make money for the arena but generate significant revenue for Charlotte's hotel industry.

The hotel-motel tax is the primary source of public funds to build the arena, although rental car taxes and the sale of city property would also be used.

Arena construction costs are estimated at $200 million, with another $50 million or so to buy land in uptown. Bank of America and Wachovia would underwrite $100 million of the costs.

The rest of the project would be financed with loans and certificates of participation -- basically bonds that would be paid back over a period of 30 years with the hotel-motel tax revenue and other sources.

City budget director Curt Walton said the finance department estimates that the total cost of building the arena and paying back the loans and interest would come to $313 million.

The document released Thursday covers the major points of an arena deal. This is the first time NBA officials have negotiated an agreement before picking owners for a team.

The owners chosen by the NBA would have to abide by the terms negotiated by the league, although they would be involved in working out some specifics that remain to be decided.

"That was a critical issue to us," McCarley said. "We didn't want an ownership group getting a second bite of the apple. The NBA understands that."

One of the main negotiating points up until now had been the length the team would be obligated to play in Charlotte. City officials wanted a long lease to ensure that they wouldn't be stuck with a building that had no major tenant paying to operate it.

The team would suffer substantial penalties for breaking the lease early, starting at $200 million in the first five years.

"The city went to extreme, but appropriate, lengths to make sure that hell-or-high water that team is here 20 years," said Marc Ganis, a Chicago-based sports marketing expert, who wasn't part of the negotiations. "Considering their experience with the Hornets, I think that's appropriate."

If the council approves the deal Nov. 11, the next step is for the NBA to pick the teams' new owners. Three potential groups have emerged: investor Steve Belkin's Boston-based group, which includes former Celtics star Larry Bird; former Black Entertainment Television owner Robert Johnson; and Miami Heat minority owner Bob Sturges.

Belkin said the deal is one his group could live with, provided the expansion fee doesn't go much beyond $300 million, which sources have said the league would probably charge.

"It's balanced and within our expectations," Belkin said.

Johnson couldn't be reached for comment, and Sturges said he hadn't seen the agreement yet.

City Council members, hearing the full details for the first time, had a number of questions, but those who have supported the arena in the past said they were inclined to do so again.

"It looks like a win-win for both parties," said Lynn Wheeler, who chairs the economic development and planning committee.

Councilman Don Lochman, however, had several concerns. Among them: That the new owners will still have significant leverage over the city as the primary tenant in a new arena.

"If they suffer operating losses beyond what they can reasonably absorb, you and I know they'll come to the city for relief," Lochman told McCarley.

But McCarley said that since the team has both the advantages and obligations of running the building, the owners wouldn't be in a position to squeeze the city for further concessions.

"There is nothing left for them to go after," McCarley said.

Based on a four-page summary the city distributed Thursday, Ganis said the deal looks fair to Charlotte, the NBA and a team owner. He compared Charlotte's $200 million construction cost to the $360 million the city of Newark might pay to build the New Jersey Nets a new arena.

"It's a reasonable amount" of public money, Ganis said. "Not insignificant, but not excessive."

 

Panther, The Arena will be right around Dixies Tavern and the Transportation Center(local bus station) where all those parking lots are south of Uptown.

 

Construction group for proposed arena looks for diversity
11/1/02 8:58 PM
By: Diana Rugg, News 14 Carolina



WATCH THE VIDEO



Arena construction

The construction company picked by the city of Charlotte to build a proposed uptown arena is already looking for ways to hire subcontractors from diverse backgrounds.







CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The construction company picked by the city of Charlotte to build a proposed uptown arena is already looking for ways to hire subcontractors from diverse backgrounds.

Charlotte's city council voted earlier this year to stop hiring women and minority-owned businesses for city contracts based on quotas, which means they have to find other ways to make sure all races and genders have equal opportunities to take part in city projects.


Darrell Carter
Darrell Carter hopes to be involved with construction of the proposed arena. He currently does work to restore homes.

"The city would help fill in that void for me. I hear they have a new coliseum to build. I hope to get a chance to bid on with the city," said Carter.

News of a possible arena project has contractors like Carter flocking to seminars with the Charlotte's new Small Business Development Program.

The Program takes the place of the city's old Minority and Women Business Development Program and Carter thinks it can help him get some work with the latest, biggest city project.

Vernetta Mitchell is watching the arena project closely.


The proposed arena will be built in First Ward.
As program manager for the the Small Business Development Program.she knows it may take some extra effort to make sure minorities are well-represented in the work but it makes financial sense.

"Everyone still has to be competitive so if a business owner, regardless of race or gender has the best price, the best quality the best service, they will have the opportunity to be awarded the contract," said Mitchell.

Mitchell says the company, Hunt Construction which has alreadybeen chosen to potentially build on the site has a good track record for diverse hiring.

"The big thing for us is to make sure women and minority businesses are participating in the program," said Mitchell.

Two local businesses have already signed on to assist both the architect and the building in the project are minority owned.

Hunt Construction, the big contractor on the project will meet within the next two weeks with city officials on this topic.

No work will begin and no subcontractors will be hired until all deals with the NBA are signed in January.