AmericanAirlines Arena "finally has generated enough profit" for the Heat franchise to "pay rent to its landlord, Miami-Dade County," according to Douglas Hanks of the MIAMI HERALD. The Heat on Friday "delivered a check for $257,134.12 to Miami-Dade County that represents the public's portion of a revenue-sharing agreement from a season that generated" about $30M in cash profits for the facility. The infusion of money "will make a tiny dent" in the roughly $6.5M operating subsidy the arena "receives each year from the county." But the payment "does mark a milestone in a financing arrangement where packed stands and high ticket sales had still allowed the Heat to occupy an arena rent-free." The Heat "funded construction of the waterfront facility on county-owned land, in exchange for the yearly operating subsidy and an agreement to share profits with Miami-Dade once the arena generates" more than $14M a year. Heat Exec VP & CFO Sammy Schulman on Friday said that the team "would answer questions on the financial reports" today. Hanks wrote the city's "fickle relationship with the Heat helps explain the franchise's rent-free years." The debut payment Friday on a 13-year-old arrangement "comes as the Heat is trying to extend its current deal with Miami-Dade under terms that could include a higher subsidy" (MIAMI HERALD, 11/23).
