The Bucks are indicating that co-Owners Wes Edens and Marc Lasry "will not go beyond" their $250M commitment for the team's proposed arena, according to Don Walker of the MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL. A source said Edens and Lasry "do not intend to exceed" the amount they promised when they purchased the team from Herb Kohl. The two pledged $150M of "their own money," which, combined with Kohl's commitment of $100M, meant $250M was "already on the table for an arena expected to cost" as much as $500M. The owners' deep pockets, as well as the financial resources of local owners who invested in the team, "are expected to be an issue as the Bucks, city, county and state officials work to forge a financial package to be considered by the Legislature's Joint Finance Committee." Wisconsin state Rep. John Nygren, the co-chair of the committee, already has said that he "thinks the Bucks' owners should contribute more." In addition to the owners' existing financial pledge, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker "has proposed the issuance" of $220M in state-appropriation bonds in support of the arena, which "would be repaid by diverting new income-tax revenue paid by Bucks players, employees and visiting NBA players." A source expected that the team will "come up with better cost estimates in the next week or two," which in turn will "give the city and county an opportunity to fine-tune their own plans" (MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL, 3/19). Meanwhile, an alternative to Walker's bond plan may be emerging, as state Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald said that he is "negotiating funding that would not rely on state-issued bond debt." He said that it is "too early to discuss specifics of the plan." Fitzgerald: "It's a different funding mechanism that could possibly eliminate the whole bonding piece, which is something that was making everyone very uncomfortable" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 3/18).
APRIL SHOWERS: Bucks President Peter Feigin on Tuesday night said that at least the financial part of the arena-financing package "will be completed by early April," with the team "under pressure from new-arena supporters and skeptics alike to reveal the owners' vision for the project." He added that the Bucks "need to work out the economic package for the arena itself and surrounding development before taking the plan to the finance committee." In Milwaukee, Rich Kirchen noted the Bucks also "need to get the information to Milwaukee city and county officials and state officials and negotiate the city and county's role in funding" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 3/18).
