Sacramento's once-thriving kingdom crumbles away - Houston Chronicle

[nebs]

Not sure exactly why I'm posting this. Maybe because we played them the other night and this was "their" take on our situation.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/3516782.html

Dec. 11, 2005, 1:29AM
NBA NOTEBOOK
Sacramento's once-thriving kingdom crumbles away
Poor decisions, ill-timed request for a new arena alienate loyal fans

By JONATHAN FEIGEN
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle

The Kings had it all going well. They had a shrewd general manager, a top-drawer coach and a town that loved them.
It took some work to ruin all that, but they seem to have done it.
The trade of Chris Webber and departure of Vlade Divac sacrificed the Kings' leadership, but those things happen. But when the Kings chased Phil Jackson this offseason, then failed to extend Rick Adelman's contract, they turned their coach into a lame duck.
Just when the Kings needed to empower their coach, they cut his legs from under him. A team without leadership knew the coach was running out of time. By last week, Kevin Martin, a decent enough young player who has accomplished absolutely nothing in the NBA, could complain about his playing time and get away with it.
At the same time, the organization has been pushing for a new arena. This is always a dicey public relations move, particularly with owners Gavin and Joe Maloof seeming to many to be living E! channel lives that might not need public funding. Charitable though the Maloofs are in Sacramento, it's always a tough sell to explain why a town that fills the arena needs to do more.
Arco Arena might not be one of the NBA's new Taj Mahals, but Sacramento can understandably question why it won't do. And the argument that a new downtown arena would enliven the neighborhood might bring up the fact that there is no downtown.
Team president John Thomas, whose time in Houston demonstrated his ability to alienate anyone, has been made the point man. Threats to make a deal or lose the team are no longer veiled.
But beyond all that, the time to seek public funding for an arena is when the team is on the way up or at the top, not while the team is in decline.
The Kings will likely get their arena. Sacramento will not let their one top-level professional sports franchise walk.
But it seems certain it will lose what it once had.

 

[John Galt]

But it seems certain it will lose what it once had.

Um, hellOOOO... Mixing up our tenses aren't we?

 

[VF21]

Actually, it's correct. The phrase "what it once had" is the object of the verb "will lose" so the "once had" part doesn't have to agree.



The rest of the article is pretty much crap...except maybe the comment about John Thomas.

 

[John Galt]

I'm taking issue with "will lose" as opposed to "has lost"

 

[VF21]

I'm taking issue with "will lose" as opposed to "has lost"

Ah, I understand.

 

[QueensFan]

What a piece of **** article.

 

[VF21]

Actually, maybe we're reading it improperly. Perhaps we should have just looked at the one line:

The Kings will likely get their arena...

That's not so bad.

 

[quick dog]

It seems to be a pretty decent assessment of the situation to me. This article was written by an outsider, so there is probably minimal spin.

 

[VF21]

I am a "loyal" fan and I am not alienated.

I do not agree with the initial premise that the kingdom is crumbling away. I definitely do not agree that everything has been ruined.

Yes, he uses the obvious to support his theory, but I am not about to accept his doomsday prediction that what the Kings "once had" is forever gone.

That's why I think the article is crap.

 

[Wuster]

I think it's true the Kings have some serious problems, on and off the court, and the article touches on them. The characterization that it is crumbling away is overstated, sensational stuff.

 

[quick dog]

This guy is an outsider, and this is his opinion. He must not be alone.

 

[Venom]

Good article, overall. I take a little umbrage with the "no downtown" statement. No city had any "downtown" until the early 90s when they started moving arenas and stadiums into city centers, except for the true metroplises. I'm not even sure that Houston did until they knew they had the Super Bowl coming and also relocated all their sports venues downtown.

 

[quick dog]

Good article, overall. I take a little umbrage with the "no downtown" statement. No city had any "downtown" until the early 90s when they started moving arenas and stadiums into city centers, except for the true metroplises. I'm not even sure that Houston did until they knew they had the Super Bowl coming and also relocated all their sports venues downtown.

I wonder who gave New Orleans the money to build their domed arena?

 

[HndsmCelt]

I wonder who gave New Orleans the money to build their domed arena?

FEMA?

 

[VF21]

I wonder who gave New Orleans the money to build their domed arena?

I believe the NFL may have actually had a hand in it...

 

[Circa_1985_Fan]

Actually, maybe we're reading it improperly. Perhaps we should have just looked at the one line:



That's not so bad.

No comment

 

[VF21]

Note: I have, with some reluctance, deleted a couple of posts that were innocuous enough by themselves but were definitely on the slippery slope towards politics. I hope those concerned understand where I'm coming from.

Thanks for understanding.

VF21

 

[VF21]

http://traveltax.msu.edu/news/Stories/notp13.htm

Hotel tax is used in more ways than Dome
Schools, parks, others claim slices of the pie

By Bruce Eggler, Staff Writer
Copyright 2001 The Times-Picayune Publishing Co.
Article date: May 27, 2001

The state now collects a 12 percent tax on hotel and motel rooms in Orleans Parish.

Of that, 4 percent goes to the Superdome Commission, 2 percent to the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, 2 percent to the state (with half of that turned over to the New Orleans Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau), 1.5 percent to the city, 1.5 percent to the School Board and 1 percent to the Regional Transit Authority.

The Superdome portion of the tax also is collected in Jefferson Parish. The other portions are not. (Aside from the 4 percent Dome tax and 2 other cents for the state, Jefferson's hotel tax -- 11.75 percent on the East Bank and 10.75 percent on the West Bank -- is dedicated to parish purposes such as schools, the Sheriff's Office, roads, sewerage and purchase of the LaSalle Tract, where Zephyr Field was built.)

The original purpose of the Superdome tax was to build the Dome in the 1970s. In recent years, construction of the New Orleans Arena, Zephyr Field, the Saints' training camp and other local sports and recreational facilities was financed from the same tax.

But paying off the bonds for all those projects takes less than half the money the commission gets. In the 1999-2000 fiscal year, the commission's 4-cent tax yielded $30.2 million, and only $14.2 million was needed for debt service. In the current fiscal year, the tax yield is likely to be about $34 million.

What happens to the rest of the Dome's money? In 1999-2000, $8.7 million was used for Dome operations, $2.3 went into a fund for improvements to the building, and $3.5 million was set aside to resurface the roof. Another $500,000, by law, went to the New Orleans Sports Foundation, which leads the city's efforts to bring major sports events to town, from Super Bowls to college and high school tournaments in many sports.

That still left more than $1 million, which was divided among the New Orleans Recreation Department, Xavier University, Southern University at New Orleans, the University of New Orleans, Jefferson Parish, the Alario Center in Westwego and the Visitors Information Center in eastern New Orleans.

In 1999-2000, the Convention Center got $14.25 million and the city and the School Board $11.2 million each from the hotel tax. (Because only the Superdome's portion of the tax is collected in Jefferson Parish, the other recipients' revenue is slightly less per penny of tax than the Dome's. The amount of money each agency gets also is affected by the fees they pay to the state for collecting it.)

The RTA did not begin collecting its 1 percent tax until August 2000. The agency uses most of the money to provide a local match for federal grants for capital projects such as the $157 million program to return streetcars to Canal Street. The remaining 40 percent of the RTA's penny is divided between the New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corp. and a trust fund for the fourth phase of the Convention Center.

That leaves the 2 percent tax the state collects. It turns over 1 percent to the Convention and Visitors Bureau, which spearheads the city's efforts to attract conventions and leisure travelers to New Orleans. The hotel tax makes up more than 60 percent of the bureau's budget.

The state's other 1 percent tax is the most controversial. The tax once was dedicated to the New Orleans Business and Industrial District to pay for a 25,000-seat auto speedway in eastern New Orleans, but the Legislature changed that in 1999 after speedway sponsors failed to convince lawmakers the project was likely to succeed.

Most of the revenue from the tax now goes into a fund from which state legislators representing Orleans Parish make mostly small grants to nonprofit organizations such as schools, charities, cultural groups and even governmental agencies. Critics deride this program, which in 1999-2000 distributed nearly $4.5 million, as a legislative slush fund.

In 1999-2000, the rest of this 1 percent tax was distributed among the Sports Foundation, $530,000; the state Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism, $484,000; the University of New Orleans, $600,000; the Downtown Development District, $400,000; the Audubon Park Commission, $100,000; the Visitor Information Center, $470,000; City Park, $200,000; and the Algiers Economic Development Foundation, $200,000.

 

[Circa_1985_Fan]

http://traveltax.msu.edu/news/Stories/notp13.htm

Hotel tax is used in more ways than Dome
Schools, parks, others claim slices of the pie

By Bruce Eggler, Staff Writer
Copyright 2001 The Times-Picayune Publishing Co.
Article date: May 27, 2001

The state now collects a 12 percent tax on hotel and motel rooms in Orleans Parish.

Of that, 4 percent goes to the Superdome Commission, 2 percent to the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, 2 percent to the state (with half of that turned over to the New Orleans Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau), 1.5 percent to the city, 1.5 percent to the School Board and 1 percent to the Regional Transit Authority.

The Superdome portion of the tax also is collected in Jefferson Parish. The other portions are not. (Aside from the 4 percent Dome tax and 2 other cents for the state, Jefferson's hotel tax -- 11.75 percent on the East Bank and 10.75 percent on the West Bank -- is dedicated to parish purposes such as schools, the Sheriff's Office, roads, sewerage and purchase of the LaSalle Tract, where Zephyr Field was built.)

The original purpose of the Superdome tax was to build the Dome in the 1970s. In recent years, construction of the New Orleans Arena, Zephyr Field, the Saints' training camp and other local sports and recreational facilities was financed from the same tax.

But paying off the bonds for all those projects takes less than half the money the commission gets. In the 1999-2000 fiscal year, the commission's 4-cent tax yielded $30.2 million, and only $14.2 million was needed for debt service. In the current fiscal year, the tax yield is likely to be about $34 million.

What happens to the rest of the Dome's money? In 1999-2000, $8.7 million was used for Dome operations, $2.3 went into a fund for improvements to the building, and $3.5 million was set aside to resurface the roof. Another $500,000, by law, went to the New Orleans Sports Foundation, which leads the city's efforts to bring major sports events to town, from Super Bowls to college and high school tournaments in many sports.

That still left more than $1 million, which was divided among the New Orleans Recreation Department, Xavier University, Southern University at New Orleans, the University of New Orleans, Jefferson Parish, the Alario Center in Westwego and the Visitors Information Center in eastern New Orleans.

In 1999-2000, the Convention Center got $14.25 million and the city and the School Board $11.2 million each from the hotel tax. (Because only the Superdome's portion of the tax is collected in Jefferson Parish, the other recipients' revenue is slightly less per penny of tax than the Dome's. The amount of money each agency gets also is affected by the fees they pay to the state for collecting it.)

The RTA did not begin collecting its 1 percent tax until August 2000. The agency uses most of the money to provide a local match for federal grants for capital projects such as the $157 million program to return streetcars to Canal Street. The remaining 40 percent of the RTA's penny is divided between the New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corp. and a trust fund for the fourth phase of the Convention Center.

That leaves the 2 percent tax the state collects. It turns over 1 percent to the Convention and Visitors Bureau, which spearheads the city's efforts to attract conventions and leisure travelers to New Orleans. The hotel tax makes up more than 60 percent of the bureau's budget.

The state's other 1 percent tax is the most controversial. The tax once was dedicated to the New Orleans Business and Industrial District to pay for a 25,000-seat auto speedway in eastern New Orleans, but the Legislature changed that in 1999 after speedway sponsors failed to convince lawmakers the project was likely to succeed.

Most of the revenue from the tax now goes into a fund from which state legislators representing Orleans Parish make mostly small grants to nonprofit organizations such as schools, charities, cultural groups and even governmental agencies. Critics deride this program, which in 1999-2000 distributed nearly $4.5 million, as a legislative slush fund.

In 1999-2000, the rest of this 1 percent tax was distributed among the Sports Foundation, $530,000; the state Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism, $484,000; the University of New Orleans, $600,000; the Downtown Development District, $400,000; the Audubon Park Commission, $100,000; the Visitor Information Center, $470,000; City Park, $200,000; and the Algiers Economic Development Foundation, $200,000.

Interesting enough. But will city council be smart enough to actually bring this up as a viable source of revenue? I like the idea, as it has worked in a few cities...I wonder if the city of Sacramento has enough hotels and revenues from these hotels to actually make this work. The only decent sized hotels in the Sac area are the Hyatt, Sheraton, Holiday Inn Downtown, and MAYBE the Embassy Suites(even though they only have a hundred units or so.)

 

[tubiscus]

Actually, it's correct. The phrase "what it once had" is the object of the verb "will lose" so the "once had" part doesn't have to agree.



The rest of the article is pretty much crap...except maybe the comment about John Thomas.

It is a newspaper in Texas!!!

I'm sorry, I was probably stating the obvious..

 

[slugking50]

Not sure exactly why I'm posting this. Maybe because we played them the other night and this was "their" take on our situation.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/3516782.html

Dec. 11, 2005, 1:29AM
NBA NOTEBOOK
Sacramento's once-thriving kingdom crumbles away
Poor decisions, ill-timed request for a new arena alienate loyal fans

By JONATHAN FEIGEN
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle

The Kings had it all going well. They had a shrewd general manager, a top-drawer coach and a town that loved them.
It took some work to ruin all that, but they seem to have done it.
The trade of Chris Webber and departure of Vlade Divac sacrificed the Kings' leadership, but those things happen. But when the Kings chased Phil Jackson this offseason, then failed to extend Rick Adelman's contract, they turned their coach into a lame duck.
Just when the Kings needed to empower their coach, they cut his legs from under him. A team without leadership knew the coach was running out of time. By last week, Kevin Martin, a decent enough young player who has accomplished absolutely nothing in the NBA, could complain about his playing time and get away with it.
At the same time, the organization has been pushing for a new arena. This is always a dicey public relations move, particularly with owners Gavin and Joe Maloof seeming to many to be living E! channel lives that might not need public funding. Charitable though the Maloofs are in Sacramento, it's always a tough sell to explain why a town that fills the arena needs to do more.
Arco Arena might not be one of the NBA's new Taj Mahals, but Sacramento can understandably question why it won't do. And the argument that a new downtown arena would enliven the neighborhood might bring up the fact that there is no downtown.
Team president John Thomas, whose time in Houston demonstrated his ability to alienate anyone, has been made the point man. Threats to make a deal or lose the team are no longer veiled.
But beyond all that, the time to seek public funding for an arena is when the team is on the way up or at the top, not while the team is in decline.
The Kings will likely get their arena. Sacramento will not let their one top-level professional sports franchise walk.
But it seems certain it will lose what it once had.

The Author has a few good friends in town. One being Jim Kozimor(They did a show together in Houston). Im sure he and Koz have been talking about the team and given a local veiw.