KRAFT MAY ASK STATE TO BUY FOXBORO

     Patriots Owner Robert Kraft may ask the state of MA to buy
Foxboro Stadium from him and then lease it back to the team,
according to Phil Primack of the BOSTON HERALD.  Kraft has
reportedly met with state officials and made a proposal that the
state "would make major stadium investments that Kraft says are
needed for the Patriots to be financially competitive."  A source
to MA Gov. William Weld said the stadium costs and improvements
would be about $100M or more, but "a lot less than building a new
open-air stadium from scratch."  There is "little support" from
state leaders to provide financial aid for the stadium because
they are "reluctant to publicly subsidize a private business."
But, by turning the stadium into a state-owned facility, Kraft
could "counter that criticism" (BOSTON HERALD, 12/15).
     PATRIOTS GAMES?  An editorial in this morning's HARTFORD
COURANT argues that the state of CT should not be used as
"bargaining lever" by Kraft to get a better stadium deal in MA.
If Kraft brings the team to CT, "he will receive a welcome and a
stadium the likes of which it has never known in Massachusetts.
But no more Patriots games" (HARTFORD COURANT, 12/15).