Magic execs say that the team has "lost more than" $37.7M during the past four years and "likely will drop another" $3M this season, according to Dan Tracy of the ORLANDO SENTINEL, who writes that team execs "blame" their "financial woes" on the TD Waterhouse Centre being, "in their estimation, obsolete." The team says that the arena will "lead to losses" of $10M "or more" the next two seasons, and Tracy notes that the team released their figures -- "without any supporting documents or detailed explanations" -- this week "as they began" a series of meetings with civic leaders to "drum up support." Meanwhile, the team said that Owner Rich DeVos "might be willing" to contribute between 11% and 29% toward the cost of the arena, with the rest coming from taxes. A new arena "likely would cost" $250M "or more," meaning DeVos "might put up as much as" $72M or "as little as" $27M. Orlando Mayor Glenda Hood and Orange County Chair Mel Martinez "have pushed" for the team to seek a renovated facility, "figuring that option is less offensive to taxpayers than abandoning" the city's 11-year-old arena (ORLANDO SENTINEL, 12/15).
