Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed said that a renovation of Philips Arena, "key to keeping" the Hawks downtown, could be a $200-300M project, and the public's tab "could be as high as" $150M, according to Leslie & Trubey of the ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION. Reed said that he "expects a deal to renovate the downtown arena by the end of March." The total cost and the taxpayer portion of the overhaul "hasn’t been set." Reed: "We have not settled on the number, but what we have looked at is our own capacity of what we can comfortably finance.” Leslie & Trubey note the Atlanta Fulton County Recreation Authority "owns Philips Arena and can issue bonds." But Reed said that the city "would need to help 'back stop' bond financing." He added that funding sources "haven’t been determined, but rental car taxes ... are likely to be part." He said that the deal "will not involve a tax increase." Reed said that the arena, which opened in '99, "hasn’t kept up with other arenas and its configuration, including a wall of suites on one side, is not in fashion with newer NBA venues." Leslie & Trubey note the Hawks' future at Philips Arena "has been in question since June" when Tony Ressler acquired the team and "did not rule out moving it out of downtown" (ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION, 2/2).
