RI Gov. Lincoln Almond "backed off from his ultimatum
to Patriots owner Robert Kraft about building a stadium in
Providence," according to the AP. Almond "reversed the
statement" of his top aide Edward Morabito, who had said
Almond "would wait no longer than Tuesday for Kraft's
decision" on the package for a $250M downtown stadium.
Almond: "Let's not talk about ultimatums" (AP/BOSTON GLOBE,
9/29). In Boston, Tina Cassidy reported that those involved
in talks last week said that RI's request for an 8% tax on
Patriots tickets "appears to be at the root of the standoff
in stadium negotiations" (BOSTON GLOBE, 9/28). Will
McDonough called RI's offer "the winner" and noted that with
MA making it's "best and last offer," the team knows "they
will never get a new facility here" (BOSTON GLOBE, 9/27).
NOTES: Kraft was the subject of an extensive profile by
C.J. Chivers in Sunday's Providence JOURNAL-BULLETIN.
Chivers: "For the better part of a month, Robert Kraft has
done what has rarely been done in the fractious world of New
England politics: he has captured the attention of two
rambunctious states" (JOURNAL-BULLETIN, 9/28). ...BUSINESS
WEEK's William Symonds examined the potential move to
Providence, noting it would mark "an astonishing comeback"
the RI capital (BUSINESS WEEK, 10/6 issue)....MA Speaker of
the House Thomas Finneran, an stadium opponent, writes a
commentary in today's GLOBE titled "Why I Won't Foot Stadium
Bill." Finneran writes he will support "expenditures on
public infrastructure needs. However, I will not yield to
owners' demands that your money be used to pay for their
salary and stadium problems" (BOSTON GLOBE, 9/29).
