Four years after the opening of the America West Arena
in Phoenix, city documents reveal that the city has
collected "only about $200,000, or less than two-tenths of
one percent," of the total revenue promised according to
Muller & Miller of the ARIZONA REPUBLIC. When the arena
opened, city officials "promised a big return," more than
$128M in shared profits. But in the renegotiated deal in
'94, two "little-publicized" provisions of the contract
state that $104M, 81% of the total, is slated to be paid in
the last ten years of the Suns' 40-year lease, with $87M of
that being paid in the final four years. But, Muller &
Miller note, the Suns "may be long gone" by then. An escape
clause allows the team to vacate after 30 years if the arena
is deemed "obsolete." Suns President Jerry Colangelo
acknowledged that it is possible that the city never will
get the full payout projected in the 40-year lease.
Colangelo: "You could build a strong case for saying, you
know, because of this back load, this is something the city
may never get." But Colangelo said that the arena's
success helped "spur the construction" of Bank One Ballpark,
which will "pump hundreds of millions of dollars" into
downtown: "This was a win-win" (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 12/16).
