If the Brewers' stadium plan is declared dead, Charlotte "is
at the top of the list" for relocation, reports Tom Haudricourt
of the MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL. "A major factor in
Charlotte's favor" is that it is home to NationsBank, the
Brewers' primary lender. According to one MLB owner,
"NationsBank is the key. Bringing major league baseball to
Charlotte only helps improve their image." Still, with the
Panthers unable to sell all their PSLs in their new stadium and
the Hornets looking for a new arena, "there are questions about
Charlotte's ability to commit" to an MLB team. Hornets Owner
George Shinn: "We would be stretching it to have three major
league franchises right now. I would think that within 10 years,
we would be more in line" (MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL, 6/19). In
Charlotte, however, Stan Olson writes their market "might be more
ready" than Milwaukee considering the population in a 100-mile
radius is 6 million while Milwaukee's is 3.8 million. In
addition, Knights Castle, home of the AAA Knights and also owned
by Shinn, could expand from 10,000 to 35,000 in the off-season.
Shinn: "I'd be interested in an equity interest, not a lot
though, because moving from one location to another doesn't make
sense in terms of our market not being ready" (CHARLOTTE
OBSERVER, 6/19).
SPEND A BUCK: Despite speculation that Bucks Owner Herb
Kohl would use his estimated $250M to help finance the Brewers
stadium deal, Bob Wolfley of the MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL
reports that is not his intention. Kohl: "I'm not a person who
is about to step in. I have my hands full with the Bucks"
(MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL, 6/19)....Milwaukee's WITI-TV
reported the Vallozi family offered to buy the team from Bud
Selig for $115M. The Vallozi's made an offer in August regarding
construction of a downtown stadium in conjunction with a
Potawatomi gambling facility (THE DAILY).
