Facility Notes

CRAIN'S N.Y. BUSINESS' Amanda Fung reported four of the six groups bidding to revive the Aqueduct racetrack have "anted-up their offers to New York state." Bidders have until this week to "change their original proposals and submit them to Gov. David Paterson's office." A group led by SL Green "boosted its offer" to $275M from $250M, while Aqueduct Entertainment Group, which includes Turner Construction, said that it "will give the state $100[M] on top of its initial" $151M bid if the state "boosts the number of video lottery terminals to 7,650 from the proposed 4,500." Las Vegas-based developer Steve Wynn "doubled his bid" to $300M from an initial proposal in June. A group led by MGM Mirage and developer R. Donahue Peebles has "also increased its bid," but a spokesperson "declined to elaborate." The group reportedly "put in an initial bid" of $150M (CRAINSNEWYORK.com, 8/21).

MAKING PROGRESS: City of Houston and Harris County (TX) officials indicated that the two sides are "negotiating a deal that could pave the way for construction of a new soccer stadium, a new jail and the redevelopment of the Astrodome." In Houston, Bradley Olson reports the negotiations "focus on the use of tax increment reinvestment zones, or TIRZ, as vehicles for the major capital projects." Harris County Community Services Dir David Turkel: "We're in the home stretch" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 8/24).

NOTES: The Univ. of Minnesota and the Wild are discussing an "outdoor NHL hockey game in the new TCF Bank Stadium in January 2012" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 8/23)....Ole Miss is "putting down new artificial turf at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium after two boosters anonymously donated $500,000" (Nashville TENNESSEAN, 8/23).