Supporters of the proposed 21,500-seat arena in
Charlotte say the building could host the ACC basketball
tournament, even though it wouldn't satisfy the 23,000-seat
capacity requirement. ACC Commissioner Gene Corrigan: "If
we go from Greensboro to Charlotte, with fewer seats, it's
going to be impossible to explain to supporters" (CHARLOTTE
OBSERVER, 3/20)...The Coalition Against Unfair Stadium Taxes
(CAUST) has formed to prevent a proposed 10% tax in WA on
licensed sports products and memorabilia that would help
finance a new Seahawks stadium. CAUST members include the
NSGA, NBA, NHL, MLB Properties, CBA, Drew Pearson Marketing,
Suncast Corp., Champion Products, Antigua Group and Huffy
Corp. (NSGA)....Cleveland city officials plan to issue
certificates of participation, and not bonds, to raise $130M
towards financing for a new football stadium. The
certificates "act and look like traditional bond debt," but
don't count against the city's debt limit. Moody's Investor
Service rated the proposed certificates as Baa1 (CRAIN'S
CLEVELAND BUSINESS, 3/17)....If the Redskins' new stadium in
Landover, MD, is completed by its target date, September 1,
it will have taken 18 months to construct. The present
record for the fastest built facility is 22 1/2 months, held
by Joe Robbie Stadium (Baltimore SUN, 3/20).
