http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/story/14273263p-15083369c.html
City, county call off arena talks with the Kings
Funding measure will not make November ballot
By Mary Lynne Vellinga and Terri Hardy -- Bee Staff Writers
Published 5:26 pm PDT Thursday, June 29, 2006 Negotiations have been called off for a new Kings arena in Sacramento's downtown railyards.
After 40 days of marathon talks but little progress, negotiations on building a new Sacramento sports arena have been suspended. Reeling from skyrocketing construction costs and unable to reach consensus on even the most basic deal points in time to a plan before voters in November, representatives from the city, county and the Sacramento Kings said Thursday they had agreed to end talks indefinitely.
"It is really disappointing," Sacramento Vice Mayor Rob Fong said of the failure to come up with a financing package. "Forty days ago, there was a real sense of optimism on both sides."
The group had aimed to win voter approval of quarter cent increase in the Sacramento County sales tax. The money would have helped fund a replacement for Arco Arena along with other community projects for cities in the county. But the two sides failed to reach an agreement on a host of complicated issues that included such fundamental items as the cost of a new arena and how much the Maloofs, owners of the Kings, would pay.
They did agree that a replacement for Arco should go in the downtown railyard, which is targeted for widescale development.
City and county representatives wouldn't reveal the kind of numbers that were being discussed, but said they couldn't come up with a deal that they could in good conscience recommend to voters.
"We're not going to just take any deal; it has to be a good deal," said Sacramento County Economic Development Director Paul Hahn.
Representatives from both sides stressed that the talks with the Maloofs did not end in acrimony - as some previously have - and made more progress than ever before. They also said they hoped to return to the negotiating table.
John Thomas, president of Maloof Sports and Entertainment, said he is disappointed but added "no one is giving up." "Experience shows that where this has been done, it's not unusual to have things happen like this," Thomas said. "Start and stop, start and stop; that’s the norm."
The obstacles to reaching an agreement, however, are too large to surmount at the moment.Former state Assemblyman Darrell Steinberg, who represented the Maloofs at the negotiating table, said construction costs were a huge hurdle.
"If you're going to cast blame anywhere, one word: inflation," he said. "This has been a topic of debate and discussion in our community for four or five years, and throughout that time period the cost increases for materials have gone up astronomically."
The decision to stop talking means a public-private arena financing deal is likely off the table at least until June 2008, the earliest time it could be placed on the ballot after this November. Most types of public financing would require voter approval.
City, county call off arena talks with the Kings
Funding measure will not make November ballot
By Mary Lynne Vellinga and Terri Hardy -- Bee Staff Writers
Published 5:26 pm PDT Thursday, June 29, 2006 Negotiations have been called off for a new Kings arena in Sacramento's downtown railyards.
After 40 days of marathon talks but little progress, negotiations on building a new Sacramento sports arena have been suspended. Reeling from skyrocketing construction costs and unable to reach consensus on even the most basic deal points in time to a plan before voters in November, representatives from the city, county and the Sacramento Kings said Thursday they had agreed to end talks indefinitely.
"It is really disappointing," Sacramento Vice Mayor Rob Fong said of the failure to come up with a financing package. "Forty days ago, there was a real sense of optimism on both sides."
The group had aimed to win voter approval of quarter cent increase in the Sacramento County sales tax. The money would have helped fund a replacement for Arco Arena along with other community projects for cities in the county. But the two sides failed to reach an agreement on a host of complicated issues that included such fundamental items as the cost of a new arena and how much the Maloofs, owners of the Kings, would pay.
They did agree that a replacement for Arco should go in the downtown railyard, which is targeted for widescale development.
City and county representatives wouldn't reveal the kind of numbers that were being discussed, but said they couldn't come up with a deal that they could in good conscience recommend to voters.
"We're not going to just take any deal; it has to be a good deal," said Sacramento County Economic Development Director Paul Hahn.
Representatives from both sides stressed that the talks with the Maloofs did not end in acrimony - as some previously have - and made more progress than ever before. They also said they hoped to return to the negotiating table.
John Thomas, president of Maloof Sports and Entertainment, said he is disappointed but added "no one is giving up." "Experience shows that where this has been done, it's not unusual to have things happen like this," Thomas said. "Start and stop, start and stop; that’s the norm."
The obstacles to reaching an agreement, however, are too large to surmount at the moment.Former state Assemblyman Darrell Steinberg, who represented the Maloofs at the negotiating table, said construction costs were a huge hurdle.
"If you're going to cast blame anywhere, one word: inflation," he said. "This has been a topic of debate and discussion in our community for four or five years, and throughout that time period the cost increases for materials have gone up astronomically."
The decision to stop talking means a public-private arena financing deal is likely off the table at least until June 2008, the earliest time it could be placed on the ballot after this November. Most types of public financing would require voter approval.
