GLENDALE, Ariz. - Glendale City Council members emerged from a four-hour private session Tuesday saying they were still unable to settle on an arena deal worthy of bringing to a vote.
Council members are seeking more assurances from the prospective owners of the Phoenix Coyotes that hockey will be a money-making venture.
Acting City Manager Dick Bowers will continue negotiations with the hockey investment group Renaissance Sports & Entertainment, city spokeswoman Julie Frisoni said. The council will meet in private session again Friday to reconsider the matter, she said.
The city will not release deal points today for public review, as had been expected.
"We're just not there yet," she said.
It's still possible that the council could vote on the matter Tuesday, Frisoni said.
"It seems tight that we would hit a July 2 date, but I would tell you that anything is possible," she said.
It was not immediately apparent how the latest delay sits with NHL and Renaissance executives, who had hoped to have the matter finalized by next week.
The deal focuses on a proposed-use agreement for the city-owned arena. Renaissance executives want to be paid as much as $15 million a year to operate the facility, which is $9 million more than the city had budgeted.
Renaissance executives have offered to reimburse the city millions by providing slices of ticket surcharges, parking revenue, naming rights and other potential profits.
However, most of those revenue streams are tied to Renaissance's ability to draw fans to NHL games and concerts.
"We're still going back to them," Councilman Gary Sherwood said. "We're still not satisfied with what we have, so the whole mix can change.
"If they offer something else up, maybe they take something else off the table, so it's not even fair to say what we've agreed to. We're still not satisfied that we have enough of our risk covered."
Tuesday's discussions included at least two other factors, Sherwood said.
The council was prepared to vote on a measure Tuesday night that would lease most of City Hall for a payment of $30 million. The city then would use most of that money to cover old debt to the NHL.
The city agreed to pay the NHL, which currently owns the team, $25 million a year for two years to manage the arena. The city raised most of the money by giving itself loans from various city funds. The City Hall lease deal would allow the city to pay back the funds.
However, NHL executives have offered to accept the last $25 million fee in installments over five years if the city approves the Renaissance package, Sherwood said.
The Council tabled the vote.
Questions arose during the private session about the city's proposed five-year budget, Sherwood said.
Council members were not made fully aware which Coyotes-related revenue was included in various draft budgets. Depending on which assumptions were made, more money might be available, Sherwood said.
Projected game-day revenue from sales inside the arena were stripped from the city's five-year budget projections after the previous proposed Coyotes sale fall apart in January, Sherwood said. Yet, game-day revenue from other Westgate businesses remained in the projections.
"That was a revelation to me today," he said.
Councilwoman Norma Alvarez, a vocal opponent of spending for professional sports, called her colleageus knuckleheads for continuing negotiations with Renaissance.
When asked to clarify her statement, Alvarez replied, "I called them knuckleheads, because they don't get it. They don't get it. They don't get it. They're going to continue discussions. Discussions of what? We're selling City Hall because of paying $50 million. C'mon. C'mon."
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