By TIM BOOTH
AP Sports Writer
SEATTLE - A San Francisco businessman has unveiled a proposal to pay for a new sports arena in Seattle, plus the cost of acquiring an NBA franchise to be the anchor tenant for the facility.
Christopher Hansen's proposal, which includes $290 million in private investments, was unveiled Thursday afternoon at Seattle City Hall.
According to a letter submitted by the Seattle native to the city, the remaining construction and development costs would be financed by the city and King County. That money would come from taxes and revenues generated by the new facility and rent charged to the teams playing in the arena. City officials are adamant that there will be no new public taxes needed for the building.
Hansen's letter also says he will find a partner to bring in an NHL franchise.
(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
| Proposal for New Sports Arena in Seattle - Project Highlights |
- Proposal is meant to bring NBA, NHL to Seattle
- New arena to be located south of Safeco Field (SoDo District)
- Investors bear the financial risk and be responsible for any cost overruns
- Public debt ($200 million cap) backed by rents from teams, tax payments, tax revenue
- Lenny Wilkens will co-chair an arena review panel to look at proposal details, with final report due in about one month
- Arena will not be built if Hansen and/or investors fail to lure a team to Seattle
- KeyArena would be used as in interim facility until the new one is built
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Previous coverage:
The mayor of Seattle will join a King County executive Thursday afternoon in a news conference to detail plans for a proposal to build a new basketball and hockey arena south of Safeco Field.
The news conference will get underway at 2 p.m.
Various media outlets, including the Seattle Times have reported that Christopher Hansen, a hedge fund manager with ties to Seattle, has met with city and county leaders over the past several months in an attempt to lure an NBA franchise back to the Emerald City.
You can watch the news conference here (KIROTV).
