Coyotes Have Not Made Arena Lease Payment In Seven Months

Glendale Mayor Elaine Scruggs Would Not Say Who Is Covering Coyotes' Rent At Arena

The Coyotes have "not made lease payments for Glendale-owned Jobing.com Arena for the past seven months," according to city documents cited by Brahm Resnik of KPNX-NBC. The payments "could be worth up to $4[M] over the course of a year." Glendale Mayor Elaine Scruggs said, "I know who is going to pay the Coyotes' rent. The taxpayers will not lose any money." But Scruggs "declined to say who was picking up the tab, citing the confidential talks between the city and potential Coyotes investors over the team's lease agreement." Resnik noted the NHL reportedly "has been paying some of the Coyotes' bill." Scruggs also would not say whether the lease money "has been deposited in a City of Glendale account," and the city documents indicated that "it's not there." Scruggs said, "There is probably a better way this could have been handled." Resnik noted Glendale City Council members who were informed of the bailout yesterday said that it was "news to them." The Coyotes lease payments totaled $4.3M in '07, the "last full year in the city documents." The documents show payments were "current through July 2008" (AZCENTRAL.com, 2/24).