Coyotes take huge step forward in securing new arena deal
Last night in Tempe, Arizona the Arizona Coyotes put forth a presentation and proposal for their new arena. The hearing, which was held before council took place over 3 hours and included presentations from Gary Bettman, Shane Doan, Nick Schmaltz and Clayton Keller, along with Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo. Tempe City Council also heard a presentation from Sky Harbour airport about why the Coyotes should not be able to build their new arena and surrounding developments in Tempe due to flight paths and noise for residents.
One thing that was made very clear throughout the presentation is that the city of Tempe and taxpayers will not be funding any real estate development with regards to the arena and surrounding areas that the Coyotes want to develop. All of it will be privately funded. As a sign of good faith, Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo is willing to give the city $40M cash upfront to assist in the cleanup of the development site before the deal is 100% approved. In addition to the arena and development being 100% privately funded, Gary Bettman also stated that upon completion of the arena, the Coyotes would sign an agreement stating they cannot be relocated for 30 years.
After a lengthy meeting full of presentations and deliberation, Tempe City Council voted «yes» and awarded an RFP to move forward with negotiations on the Coyotes' proposed arena & entertainment district. With the approval to move forward the Coyotes can now move forward with renderings, planning and development, however this does not guarantee a deal between the city and Coyotes is a foregone conclusion, but it is a major step forward in that direction.
For now, the Coyotes will play out of Arizona State University's new 5000 seat arena, which should provide us with some interesting headlines over the next few years.
