Pacers Owner Herb Simon this weekend revealed the team someday will be owned by his 53-year-old son, Steve, and he said that "father and son are on the same page: The Pacers are staying in Indianapolis," according to Gregg Doyel of the INDIANAPOLIS STAR. Steve Simon has been "working closely" with Pacers President & COO Rick Fuson for five years, and also met last week with "several" Pacers department heads. Herb Simon: "If anything happens to me, he’d be taking over." The Pacers' lease with Bankers Life Fieldhouse runs through the '23-24 season, and Simon said, “We’re sitting down to try to extend the lease for the next 25 years, or 20 years, so I’ll know we’ll be here.” Simon added that the arena can be "made viable for another quarter-century -- viable financially, and for the fan experience -- with a 'major redo' that would be considerably cheaper than building a new arena." He added that the franchise has spent more than $1M on renovation concepts, and soon will "sit down with the city and other people to work it out." Fuson said that renovations "could be done over the course of several summers, meaning the Pacers wouldn’t have to find a temporary home to accommodate the work." Meanwhile, the 83-year old Simon said that he is in "great health, working out twice a day." Simon: "My purpose and all the plans I’ve made for the succession is to extend the lease and be here." He added, "My planning, all of the financial planning, is to figure out a way. It’s always a big tax problem when someone (dies), for the next generation, but ... we won’t have a problem with that" (INDYSTAR.com, 10/20).
