The Heat agreed to a deal with Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez on Friday, under which they would begin "paying rent at AmericanAirlines Arena -- but ultimately receive more than enough new subsidies to cover the new expense," according to Douglas Hanks of the MIAMI HERALD. The new deal would "keep the team in the county-owned facility" at least through '35, and the Heat would "end what has been a nearly fruitless profit-sharing arrangement for Miami-Dade in favor of an immediate stream" of yearly $1M donations to the county parks department. The Heat would get an "extra five subsidized years at the county-owned arena, not the 10 that owner Micky Arison originally requested." Miami-Dade also would "retain its claim to naming-rights revenue, rejecting the Heat’s proposal to end the arrangement before American’s current sponsorship resets" in '20. As part of the extension, the Heat’s current $6.4M yearly subsidy from county hotel taxes "would jump" to $8.5M in '31. In all, the deal would cost Miami-Dade an additional $19M through '35, which is "far less" than the $120M "price tag for the original deal that Arison publicly proposed shortly after his team entered the NBA playoffs last month." County commissioners "must sign off on any agreement." Sources said that mayoral aides and the Heat’s lobbying team "both had pushed to get the deal ready for a vote" at tomorrow's county commission meeting. But commissioners on Friday "pushed back at what they saw as a rushed process." Commission Chair Rebeca Sosa's office said that the item "would not be included" on the meeting agenda (MIAMI HERALD, 5/17).
