With 79 luxury suites planned for Safeco Field, the
Mariners' new ballpark, and 82 suites slated for the
Seahawks new stadium, the Seattle luxury suite market "is
about to get crowded," according to Angelo Bruscas of the
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER. Currently, the Mariners and
Seahawks share the 70 suites in the Kingdome, while the Key
Arena sports 58 suites. Kingdome spokesperson Carol Keaton
said if the local economy "keeps going the way it is, they
should have no problem (selling the suites)." Keaton added
that two things "matter: the economy and the won-loss
record. Then thirdly, the new stadium and the amenities may
draw them in as well." Bonham Group President Dean Bonham,
on the influx of suites: "The question is not so much the
size of the community, but what the support level has been
for the teams over the years." Bruscas wrote that several
"major" Seattle-area companies, including Microsoft and
Boeing, "have yet to decide which team to support with a
suite purchase." Seahawks Owner Paul Allen has hired KPMG
to examine the "economic climate for luxury seating," since
the team's stadium, scheduled to open in 2002, will be the
last to start marketing suites. Allen is using the same
marketing team that sold suites for the Portland Rose
Garden, where all 70 suites were sold before ground was
broken on the facility (SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER, 7/9).
