The Nets informed NJ Gov. Christie Whitman yesterday
that they will "leave the Continental Airlines Arena and
move to a new arena in downtown Newark," according to
Sterling & Jordan of the Newark STAR-LEDGER. In an hour-
long meeting with Whitman, team ownership "formally
rejected" a proposal by the New Jersey Sports & Exposition
Authority (NJSEA) to keep the team at the Meadowlands and
stated their intentions to "work with" a Newark group and
build in Newark. But a source said the team "did not say
when they anticipate leaving" the arena. The Nets' lease,
which runs through 2007, has an "escape clause" that allows
them to move anywhere in NJ before then without penalty.
Sterling & Jordan write that Nets ownership "spent most" of
their meeting with Whitman "pitching details of their Newark
plan." They told her and several of her top aides that they
would invest $200M "in private money in a Newark arena, but
need" $100M in public funds for infrastructure improvements
and signage around the site. A source said that Whitman was
"noncommittal" on the owners' plans (STAR-LEDGER, 5/12).
