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In my five years in public office, Tempe residents have never asked for an entertainment district.
They demand housing, pensions, childcare and employment. They called for full funding for schools and solutions to the ongoing impact of the pandemic.
Arizona Coyotes Proposed Tempe Entertainment District Only one of these needs is addressed – employment – and it is very partially addressed.city ​​council should abolish the entire project.
In promotional materials, the hockey team talks about their The $1.7 billion “Manica” district A luxurious “unique destination” that will create jobs and generate net new tax revenue is tantalizingly depicted at Rio Salado Parkway and Priest Drive.
They brag about taxes but want years of free rides
But a closer look at their business plan turned out to be far from ideal for current Tempe residents. Essentially, this would require a generous tax giveaway to a proven poor economic actor — the current Coyotes owner — that would deprive our city of the additional funding for the aforementioned much-needed services.
The beleaguered NHL team has pledged to turn a city-owned 46-acre venue into a “regional landmark” that includes a multi-purpose arena (the team’s future home), a music venue, “upscale” retail and office space, more than 1,600 residential units, plus “boutique” and “conference” hotels.
Ongoing Controversy:Phoenix wants to stop Coyotes from developing in Tempe
Coyotes make sure to tout estimates repeatedly 6,900 permanent jobs and $215 million Net new taxes (over 30 years) that this project will bring to Tempe.
What they don’t share so publicly is that they are also asking for a 30-year and 8-year government property lease excise tax (GPLET) with a tax cut of more than $649 million, or a 65-year and 8-year GPLET, the total tax cut will be over $1.1 billion.
Is this behavior that Tempe wants to reward?
Then there’s the Coyotes’ disgraced financial record under current owner Alex Meruelo, who took over the franchise in July 2019.
Early on, his tenure was mired in “a tumultuous transition in business operations, contentious financial disputes between the team and its contractors and suppliers, a spate of firings and resignations of key employees and turmoil within the front office”. The Athletic Deep Exposure Put it in early 2021.
Just six months later, after months of stalled talks with the Coyotes over a joint lease deal for Gila River Arena, the City of Glendale has reached the point of no return, opting to kick the team out by June this year. Out, it was a decision of all the city council members supported last summer, the sports publication reported.
As The Athletic reported last August, talks between the city and Coyotes Crash after a few months Negotiations owed by the hockey team stalled and “multiple notices regarding outstanding and delinquent balances” as part of the lease agreement.
The publication also revealed that Gila River Arena notified the Coyotes that as of July 17, 2021, the team owed the Arena $1,462,792, of which $300,000 was “over four months in arrears.”
Is this really the kind of corporate behavior that the city of Tempe hopes will pay off over the next 30 to 65 years?
I do not think so. As the many residents who have spoken out against the project at several city council meetings have shown, I am far from alone.
Like Glendale, our community deserves better.
Democratic Rep. Athena Salman represents Tempe in the 26th Legislative District.contact her asalman@azleg.gov.
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