The Maryland Stadium Authority "is confident there will
     be more parking than ever available" at Camden Yards, by
     securing more than 6,000 spots for Ravens games and 5,300
     for Orioles games (Baltimore SUN, 2/19)....NYC Mayor Rudy
     Giuliani "vowed to keep the Mets and Yankees" in NYC with
     new stadiums, "as a deal for a new Mets ballpark appeared to
     be on the fast track" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 2/19)....The first
     scratch lottery game aimed at helping finance a new Seahawks
     stadium hits stores this week in WA.  The "Sports Bonanza"
     tickets cost $2 each.  Lottery games are expected to provide
     $6M a year for the stadium project, or $127M (corrected for
     inflation) over 23 years (SEATTLE TIMES, 2/19)....
     Southwestern Bell is polling Oklahoma City residents about
     their reaction to their naming Southwestern Bell Park, home
     of the AAA OK RedHawks.  The name announcement in January
     drew widespread criticism from the public (OKLAHOMAN, 2/18).

          Jack Kent Cooke Stadium will undergo renovations
     "costing several million dollars" to be completed before the
     '98 NFL season, according to Solomon & Heath of the
     WASHINGTON POST.  Redskins President John Kent Cooke said
     that "the additions would be privately financed" and that
     "there would be no increase in ticket prices for the
     upcoming season."  The planned changes include "enclosing
     with glass the concourses surrounding the two levels of
     executive suites, plus the club level, and creating a new
     enclosed lobby."  The four stadium restaurants will also be
     "upgraded."  By the end of the '97 season, 3,000 of the
     15,000 stadium club seats were unsold, and "about 15" of the
     208 luxury boxes also were unsold (WASHINGTON POST, 2/19). 

          MN State Rep. Loren Jennings, the chief sponsor of a
     new Twins ballpark bill in the MN House, "withdrew his
     request" for a hearing on the proposal Wednesday, a move
     that he said ends the long-odds attempt to approve a
     financing bill this session," according to Robert Whereatt
     of the Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE.  Jennings said the votes
     "aren't there" for a ballpark measure (STAR TRIBUNE, 2/19). 
     State Sen. Roy Terwilliger, a co-sponsor of the bill, said
     it's "up to" the Twins and MLB "to find a way to keep
     baseball in Minnesota" (ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS, 2/19).
          WHAT ABOUT BUD? MLB Acting Commissioner Bud Selig was
     in Charlotte for a Regional Sports Commission dinner and
     said he is "deeply troubled" by the Twins' situation. 
     Selig: "I'm very concerned" (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 2/19).
          WALK ON THE WILD SIDE: MN State Senate Majority Leader
     Roger Moe, a ballpark supporter, said that failure of the
     project "significantly reduces the chances of the city's
     hockey arena being included in this year's capital
     improvements bill" (ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS, 2/19).

          The management of 30 Wendy's NC restaurants decided "to
     withdraw their participation in the newly-launched campaign"
     for an MLB stadium tax in the Triad, according to Justin
     Catanoso of the Greensboro NEWS & RECORD.  Wendy's was one
     of three fast-food chains to agree to be in the "Vote Yes
     for Baseball" campaign, but announced that it is opting out
     of the initiative.  Wendy's Greensboro Dir of Marketing John
     Dainotto: "Wendy's is not pro tax.  We believe that's an
     issue that's got to be resolved by the voters. ... We're not
     in favor of promoting the Triad stadium movement."  Wendy's
     management "initially agreed to provide what it hoped would
     be neutral information" about the tax proposal, provided by
     the "Vote Yes" campaign, but Dainotto said that Wendy's
     "didn't want its customers to think the restaurant was
     supporting the tax" (Greensboro NEWS & RECORD, 2/18).