Chris Hansen — the hedge-fund manager and not the To Catch a Predator host — must really want to bring an indoor professional sports team to Seattle. Hansen and his investment team are willing to go all in on the construction costs for a new athletic facility and have reportedly informed the city of Seattle they are willing to build the arena at no cost to the city or county.
That sounds almost too good to be true, right? Well, it might be.
As our own Sean Keeley notes via Curbed Seattle, the city has to commit to vacating a one-block stretch of land required for the proposed arena and provide tax credits to the project. In a letter sent to the mayor’s office from Hansen and his team, the end of a recession and the new NBA television contract have changed the outlook for the challenges facing the construction of a new stadium.
“These considerations lead us to suggest a new proposal. Our goal has always been to return the NBA to Seattle and to build a new arena to make that possible,” Hansen’s letter to the mayor states.
“We have concluded that a changed economic climate makes possible the private financing of the arena. For that reason, and to address concerns expressed by City Council members, we would consider revising the street vacation petition to eliminate public financing of the arena. In such a case the [Memorandum of Understanding] would be terminated and the rights and obligations of the parties under the MOU would end. The City and the County would recoup the $200 million in debt capacity and tax revenue streams generated by the arena would cease to be encumbered for arena debt service.”
So, does this mean Seattle is one giant step closer to bringing back the NBA to the city? Well, who knows. Politics are difficult for sportswriters to comprehend this time. But if someone is willing to cover the construction costs of a new venue, that does seem optimistic for those wishing for the NBA to return to Seattle in the near future.
