A group fronted by developer Eddie Garcia and backed by more than $150M from a Chinese conglomerate will "get the first crack at a deal to build an 18,000-seat sports and entertainment arena" in Virginia Beach, according to a front-page piece by John Holland of the Norfolk VIRGINIAN-PILOT. Mayor Will Sessoms and council members last night said that the council chose U.S. Management’s "privately financed proposal because it posed the least risk to taxpayers." USM "beat out a rival bid by the team of contractor W.M. Jordan, which included influential developer Bruce Thompson." USM’s plan "calls for it to spend" more than $200M of its own money to build the arena, then receive up to $7M annually in tax revenue to "pay down its debt." But yesterday's vote "doesn't guarantee an arena for the city." A "key to the project’s future will come July 8, when city staff members and a consultant will unveil the costs of building infrastructure to support the arena." Both proposals "call for the city to pay those costs entirely, and each group estimated them" at about $50M. Consultant Convention Sports & Leisure at the meeting gave a report, which showed that USM's building would "be larger than that proposed" by Jordan and "would seat more people." The private entity would "assume all risks if the project didn't meet revenue projections" (Norfolk VIRGINIAN-PILOT, 5/14).
