In Sacramento, Dale Kasler notes the California Supreme Court "dismissed a lawsuit this week" challenging the NBA Kings' arena project on environmental grounds. Without comment, the court "refused to hear an appeal filed by project opponents" led by retired state DOT Dir Adriana Saltonstall. The court’s decision "leaves one remaining legal hurdle to the project" that broke ground last October -- a lawsuit by three Sacramentans challenging the city’s $255M public subsidy (SACRAMENTO BEE, 5/22).
SOUND EFFECT: Sounders Minority Owner & GM Adrian Hanauer on Thursday said that the MLS team "will open CenturyLink Field to its full capacity for four games" this season. In Seattle, Matt Pentz notes those include matches against the Whitecaps (Aug. 1), Timbers (Aug. 30), Galaxy (Oct. 4) and Real Salt Lake (Oct. 25). Hanauer: "We’re hoping to average 60,000-plus." Pentz notes the stadium also "will be fully open for the Manchester United-Club America friendly on July 17" (SEATTLE TIMES, 5/22).
LAND BEFORE TIME: In Orlando, Iliana Limon Romero noted those who pass the site of Orlando City SC’s new downtown soccer stadium “haven't seen much progress as the club waits for state legislators to decide whether they will distribute” $30M that has “already been earmarked for the venue but has yet to be distributed.” Club Founder & President Phil Rawlins said, "We're in something of a holding pattern because we're waiting on the state to come through with the commitment of the sales tax refund." Romero noted Orlando City “already secured enough local funding to build” an $85M stadium, but “soon after the funding was approved, the state set up a new a process to award sales-tax subsidies for stadium improvements” (ORLANDO SENTINEL, 5/20).
SIX PACK: In Chicago, Phil Thompson reports Northern Illinois’ Huskie Stadium will have a new football field design this fall, but first the university is “teasing the updated look by posting and tweeting six designs that were considered.” NIU officials decided to replace last season's FieldTurf with the latest version of the playing surface, and the upgrade “gave them an opportunity to update the design, which has been the same since FieldTurf was originally installed on Brigham Field” in ‘01. The six styles were “created by graphic design students who work in the athletic department's marketing office” (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 5/22).
