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October 06, 2011
Sacramento, AEG hold talks about plan for talking about plans
Sacramento city officials and would-be Kings arena builders ICON/Taylor held their first meeting with representatives from the arena-management company AEG yesterday, and emerged with an agreement that this meeting thing is a keen idea:
In a joint statement, Mayor Kevin Johnson and City Manager John Shirey said the conversation focused on making progress before the end of the year.
"All sides expressed a desire to continue to work collaboratively," it read. "Our focus is on putting in place a public-private partnership that will put the taxpayers first and generate more than 4,000 jobs and $150 million in annual economic activity in the city."
Before the meeting, Shirey had issued a memo that the meeting with AEG was only a "preliminary technical discussion," and adding: "Following this discussion, we will lay out the process and timeline that formal discussions and negotiations will take place. Our collective goal is to reach a definitive financing plan by the end of the year."
As for the elephant in the room — the fact that the city still doesn't have a set funding plan — that wasn't mentioned in either of Shirey's statements. Not in the room, meanwhile, were representatives of the Kings:
Kings co-owner George Maloof, asked about the Dallas meeting, said, "We weren't invited."
"They're going to meet and they're going to get back to us," he said. "That's been the process. It's a little strange, but we're anxiously awaiting what they have."
He said the city and the developers have been extremely busy and "we've left them alone," adding that the Kings' owners have not been approached with a proposed annual rental fee.
"Nobody's put a number down," he said.
Arena talks are lots of fun, until it's time for somebody to pick up the check.
Closed session talks regarding the 49ers stadium are still going on here, and there's been an election without cost disclosure, but there's still no contract between the 49ers and the city, and no financial plan.
It's amazing how much time and millions of dollars of taxpayer money (on consultants and lawyers and city staff time) can be spent without actually having a firm agreement and plan for who pays for what.
Posted by SantaClaraTaxpayer on October 6, 2011 09:57 AM
The spin we're getting here from Kings fans is that the Maloofs not being at the meeting is a good thing, because it means the Maloofs are on the way out as owners.
Hmmm. I've asked before, but what if Samueli is the highest bidder? Still think that'd be a good thing, Kings fans? I don't think they are for sale, but assuming Burkle is even a potential buyer is assuming far too much.
I bet this goes forward now, though. It's going to cause problems very quickly, but I think, regardless of how large the funding gap is, they'll build this stupid arena in this horrible location.
I hope I can retire and move to a different tax jurisdiction before the cost overruns, well, overrun us.
Posted by MikeM on October 6, 2011 12:02 PM
@ MikeM - I think it's more a case of it being a Good Thing that the Maloofs are at arm's length from the arena negotiations because of the recent Maloof track record of effing up everything they get involved in.
Posted by SierraSpartan on October 6, 2011 02:20 PM
Neil, what do you think of this article?
www.newsreview.com/sacramento/among-the-sharks/content?oid=4017156
Posted by MikeM on October 6, 2011 04:26 PM
you make fun of some very fine negotiators representing Sacramento...
John Dangberg Assistant City Manager in charge of development and other things and noted assistant to Ray Kerridge the most incompetent (former) City Manager west of the Pecos....was also there to represent the City...(Sacramento, not SF)...
He's the guy who plowed under the People's Garden for his buddy developers to build Apartments...all on the redevelopment dime of course...engineered the last Arena vote (we know how that went)...was gung ho about the Sacca Highrise scam (10 million Sac bucks) and the Craig Nazzi Highrise scam (10 million bucks)ALL never built...Railyard boondoggle where the Venice Beach Architect Jon Jerde had to sue the developer to get his money...
WE all know the moral ineptitude of Kevin Johnson but these other guys only qualify for Carnival Barker showmen at the Geek Show (Sacramentans biting heads off chickens)
Posted by sergio on October 7, 2011 04:04 PM
I just love this fluff piece in Sunday's Bee:
www.sacbee.com/2011/10/09/3970331/aeg-could-help-make-sacramentos.html
Is it possible to misrepresent AEG's deal in Kansas City to a greater degree than this article does?
Posted by MikeM on October 10, 2011 11:42 AM