The Patriots have been offered a $10M annual "sweetener" by the state of Rhode Island if they agree to lease a proposed 70,000 seat stadium in Providence, according to Nick Cafardo in today's BOSTON GLOBE. Patriots Owner Robert Kraft "emphatically denied" the offer through the team's VP/Communications Don Lowery. But Cafardo writes that RI officials "would love to see the deal consummated" this week, "at the height of [the] media frenzy" surrounding Bill Parcells' return to New England. The $10M figure would be "partially offset" by a projected $6M in "traceable income tax revenue" from Patriots players living and working in RI. Under terms of the deal, "about" $100M in infrastructure costs would be publicly funded, with Kraft paying around $150M. The stadium would be built in downtown Providence at the interchange of Routes 195 and 95 and would have 35-40 luxury boxes and "several thousand" club seats, which would be sold with PSLs. One of the "current hangups" in the deal is the division of profits from the luxury boxes and club seats. Should the deal be finalized, the Patriots would "likely" move their corporate headquarters to Providence and bring Kraft's MLS Revolution with them (BOSTON GLOBE, 9/10).
