{coyotes} Goldwater Institute says it won't contest Coyotes lease

Saturday 13 July 2013

{coyotes} Goldwater Institute says it won't contest Coyotes lease

Over the past few years, whenever it appeared the NHL was on the verge of selling the Phoenix Coyotes franchise as agreements with the city of Glendale were in place, the watchdog group Goldwater Institute was always there to get in the way.

So you could excuse some people if they didn't get overly excited when Glendale approved a new lease agreement to clear the way for a sale to a new investment group, Renaissance Sports & Entertainment, to keep the team in the desert. Until Goldwater was heard from, there were still questions whether there would be anymore issues.

Goldwater has now spoken, and there will be no more issues.

Based on the information available to us at this time, we do not believe that the Glendale arena management deal would be held unconstitutional. Changes made to the agreement during the course of negotiations partially bridged the gap between the market cost of arena management and the amount of the payment to the team owner, thus bringing the deal into conformity with cases interpreting the Gift Clause of the Arizona Constitution.

The initial deal proposed several years ago would have included not only a substantial annual arena management fee but a $100 million up-front payment to subsidize the purchase of the team. We are proud to have played a constructive role in protecting the taxpayers and taking an illegal deal off the table.

Glendale's long and painful experience illustrates why local governments should focus on providing basic and essential public services and avoid the temptation to subsidize private enterprises such as sports teams.

Phew!

Now that Goldwater is satisfied with the legality of the lease agreement, we can move on and wait for the last steps that will finalize the sale. All that's left between here and the Coyotes securing their home in the desert is the actual purchase of the team and approval from the Board of Governors, both believed to be nothing more than formalities.

Goldwater's main contentions were focused on how much money the city of Glendale was offering to support the team in previous potential deals for the franchise. However, the lease that was just approved for the RSE partnership was the most favorable so far for Glendale as revenue streams are built in to help funnel money back to the city, theoretically reducing the amount of money the city will spend by a substantial amount.

We're so close to the finish line at this point, it's great to see that Goldwater won't be there to trip up the sale once again.