http://www.sacbee.com/kings/story/363391.html
Cal Expo arena talks requested
Money and traffic are seen as key problems in putting a new Kings facility at the fairgrounds.
By Mary Lynne Vellinga - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PDT Thursday, September 6, 2007
Story appeared in METRO section, Page B1
A National Basketball Association consultant Wednesday sent a letter to Cal Expo asking to start talks aimed at locating a new Kings arena at the fairgrounds.
John Moag wrote to Cal Expo management that his firm has "been authorized by (NBA) Commissioner David Stern to enter into more formal discussions and negotiations. If the Cal Expo Board is interested in entertaining such discussions, we stand prepared to do so immediately."
Moag has been soliciting information from Cal Expo for months as part of his quest to come up with a new arena plan for Sacramento. Stern hired Moag after Sacramento voters in November trounced a city-county plan to raise sales taxes and build an arena in the downtown railyard.
Brian May, deputy general manager for state-owned Cal Expo, said Wednesday he thinks the board will likely authorize the negotiations at its Sept. 28 meeting.
"I believe there would be interest on the board's part to pursue discussions with the NBA," May said.
Cal Expo has been looking for a way to revamp its aging state fairgrounds and tackle a list of deferred maintenance items that totals about $40 million. The facility's horse racing operations, which occupy about 100 acres, also face an uncertain future as the racing industry wanes.
"There's no harm in pursuing this to see if it's a viable alternative, one that's compatible with Cal Expo and could provide money to redevelop the fairgrounds or deal with the deferred maintenance issues," May said.
Two of the biggest hurdles to building an arena in Cal Expo are money and traffic. May stressed that Cal Expo, which gets no money from the state general fund, has nothing to contribute to building an arena. It remains to be seen whether Moag can devise a financing plan that could both pay for a new Kings arena -- likely to cost half a billion dollars -- and help revamp the fairgrounds.
"We don't have the details of what Mr. Moag is proposing, so I couldn't comment on whether it would pencil out or not," May said.
Moag is keeping his plan under tight wraps until it is ready for Stern to unveil publicly. He said the commissioner hopes to make an announcement in early November.
One idea long bandied about would be to develop part of the 360-acre fairgrounds and use the proceeds to pay for the arena.
But Sacramento County Supervisor Roger Dickinson said he wonders if such a development could produce the kind of money needed. "You'd have to have somebody with some very big pockets come in and finance that, and it's not the NBA," he said. "To my knowledge, the NBA is not bringing any money to the party."
Traffic is another issue looming over any discussion of the Cal Expo site.
During any given rush hour, about 6,000 vehicles a day squeeze into the Capital City Freeway lanes that pass by Exposition Boulevard, said Mark Dinger, spokesman for the California Department of Transportation.
"Could it handle it? Yes, but not very well," Dinger said. "It moves slow through there now."
In a phone interview Wednesday, Moag acknowledged that traffic is a significant problem.
"I myself have been in that traffic at rush hour, and there's nothing fun about it," he said. "If things were to get serious with the NBA and Cal Expo, I think the neighbors would find a very strong ally marching arm and arm with them to try to address that problem."
The city and county recently completed a $2.4 million project to better monitor traffic and regulate traffic lights on Arden Way, said Linda Tucker, a city spokeswoman. The draft Metropolitan Transportation Plan now under consideration by the Sacramento Area Council of Governments also includes a new northbound offramp from Exposition Boulevard to the Capital City Freeway, said SACOG Executive Director Mike McKeever.
But any widening of the freeway itself would be expensive, Dinger said, since the elevated structure crosses the city landfill, two sets of railroad tracks and the American River.
Still, McKeever, head of the region's transportation planning agency, said he doesn't think the traffic problem is impossible to solve.
Like many local leaders, McKeever favored the railyard site because of its proximity to thousands of downtown office workers, and its location next to light rail. But if the railyard doesn't work out, McKeever said he thinks Cal Expo could be a viable alternative.
"We would have to design a much better transit connection to that area than we currently have, and there would have to be some improvements to the interchanges with the Capital City Freeway," he said.
Moag said the NBA looked to the railyard as its first choice for an area location but couldn't come up with a viable proposal.
"There's no getting around the fact that a lot of challenges remain on that site," he said.
About the writer: The Bee's Mary Lynne Vellinga can be reached at (916) 321-1094 or mlvellinga@sacbee.com.
Cal Expo arena talks requested
Money and traffic are seen as key problems in putting a new Kings facility at the fairgrounds.
By Mary Lynne Vellinga - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PDT Thursday, September 6, 2007
Story appeared in METRO section, Page B1
A National Basketball Association consultant Wednesday sent a letter to Cal Expo asking to start talks aimed at locating a new Kings arena at the fairgrounds.
John Moag wrote to Cal Expo management that his firm has "been authorized by (NBA) Commissioner David Stern to enter into more formal discussions and negotiations. If the Cal Expo Board is interested in entertaining such discussions, we stand prepared to do so immediately."
Moag has been soliciting information from Cal Expo for months as part of his quest to come up with a new arena plan for Sacramento. Stern hired Moag after Sacramento voters in November trounced a city-county plan to raise sales taxes and build an arena in the downtown railyard.
Brian May, deputy general manager for state-owned Cal Expo, said Wednesday he thinks the board will likely authorize the negotiations at its Sept. 28 meeting.
"I believe there would be interest on the board's part to pursue discussions with the NBA," May said.
Cal Expo has been looking for a way to revamp its aging state fairgrounds and tackle a list of deferred maintenance items that totals about $40 million. The facility's horse racing operations, which occupy about 100 acres, also face an uncertain future as the racing industry wanes.
"There's no harm in pursuing this to see if it's a viable alternative, one that's compatible with Cal Expo and could provide money to redevelop the fairgrounds or deal with the deferred maintenance issues," May said.
Two of the biggest hurdles to building an arena in Cal Expo are money and traffic. May stressed that Cal Expo, which gets no money from the state general fund, has nothing to contribute to building an arena. It remains to be seen whether Moag can devise a financing plan that could both pay for a new Kings arena -- likely to cost half a billion dollars -- and help revamp the fairgrounds.
"We don't have the details of what Mr. Moag is proposing, so I couldn't comment on whether it would pencil out or not," May said.
Moag is keeping his plan under tight wraps until it is ready for Stern to unveil publicly. He said the commissioner hopes to make an announcement in early November.
One idea long bandied about would be to develop part of the 360-acre fairgrounds and use the proceeds to pay for the arena.
But Sacramento County Supervisor Roger Dickinson said he wonders if such a development could produce the kind of money needed. "You'd have to have somebody with some very big pockets come in and finance that, and it's not the NBA," he said. "To my knowledge, the NBA is not bringing any money to the party."
Traffic is another issue looming over any discussion of the Cal Expo site.
During any given rush hour, about 6,000 vehicles a day squeeze into the Capital City Freeway lanes that pass by Exposition Boulevard, said Mark Dinger, spokesman for the California Department of Transportation.
"Could it handle it? Yes, but not very well," Dinger said. "It moves slow through there now."
In a phone interview Wednesday, Moag acknowledged that traffic is a significant problem.
"I myself have been in that traffic at rush hour, and there's nothing fun about it," he said. "If things were to get serious with the NBA and Cal Expo, I think the neighbors would find a very strong ally marching arm and arm with them to try to address that problem."
The city and county recently completed a $2.4 million project to better monitor traffic and regulate traffic lights on Arden Way, said Linda Tucker, a city spokeswoman. The draft Metropolitan Transportation Plan now under consideration by the Sacramento Area Council of Governments also includes a new northbound offramp from Exposition Boulevard to the Capital City Freeway, said SACOG Executive Director Mike McKeever.
But any widening of the freeway itself would be expensive, Dinger said, since the elevated structure crosses the city landfill, two sets of railroad tracks and the American River.
Still, McKeever, head of the region's transportation planning agency, said he doesn't think the traffic problem is impossible to solve.
Like many local leaders, McKeever favored the railyard site because of its proximity to thousands of downtown office workers, and its location next to light rail. But if the railyard doesn't work out, McKeever said he thinks Cal Expo could be a viable alternative.
"We would have to design a much better transit connection to that area than we currently have, and there would have to be some improvements to the interchanges with the Capital City Freeway," he said.
Moag said the NBA looked to the railyard as its first choice for an area location but couldn't come up with a viable proposal.
"There's no getting around the fact that a lot of challenges remain on that site," he said.
About the writer: The Bee's Mary Lynne Vellinga can be reached at (916) 321-1094 or mlvellinga@sacbee.com.
