BY ERIC D. WILLIAMS
Eric.williams@thenewstribune.com

Indianapolis – A private investor group who have put up the lion’s share of a $300 million proposal to refurbish KeyArena say the clock is ticking on their offer to fund a new facility for the Seattle SuperSonics at Seattle Center.

In a letter addressed to Gov. Christine Gregoire and other top state lawmakers on Sunday, the investment group, headed by Microsoft executive Steve Ballmer, states that if they do not receive a $75 commitment from the state well before an April 10th deadline, “We will need to go back to our other responsibilities and our offer will expire.”

The group of four local businessmen includes Ballmer, local developer Matt Griffin, Costco CEO Jim Sinegal and wireless magnate John Stanton. The group partnered with the City of Seattle, and announced in a proposal last Thursday its willingness to buy the Sonics from its Oklahoma City-based ownership group, paying for half of a $300 million renovation of KeyArena.
The offer is contingent on the sale of the Sonics or another NBA team to the group and passage of legislation by state lawmakers. It’s the largest offer of private money to renovate the arena at Seattle Center so far.
However, Gregoire and the Legislature balked at addressing the issue this late in this year’s legislative session.

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Rep. Jeff Morris, D-Anacortes, speaker pro-tem in the house, said the governor, along House Speaker Frank Chopp and Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown, drafted and sent letters on Monday in response to investor group’s ultimatum. The letters provided the Legislature’s commitment that it will write into a supplemental capital budget language stating this it will address securing money to refurbish KeyArena, along with several other King County projects interested in using a revenue stream that brings in about $60 million in taxes annually, during the legislative session in 2009.

The revenue tax stream includes restaurant and car-rental taxes from King County currently being used to pay off Safeco Field, due to expire in 2016. No new taxes would be required.

Further, the group states the city has enough taxing authority to commit the $75 million desired from the state to the overall $300 million package to upgrade KeyArena, making the proposal whole for presentation to the NBA in April.

Morris said there are two major hurdles for the Legislature in approving money for the KeyArena remodel by the end of the session on Thursday. The first is the vote itself. An arena bill would need a two-thirds approval vote in the house just to for the House to consider voting on the project, according the state constitution, Morris said. And Morris does not believe there is broad enough support in the House for that vote to pass.

Further, other King County projects, including the Husky Stadium renovation, and projects for low-income, the arts community, education, youth sports and Puget Sound cleanup would be passed over by the Legislature in favor of the KeyArena remodel, creating a stir amongst supporters of these projects.

To avoid that, Morris said the Legislature would rather deal with these projects, along with the KeyArena proposal, in full during its next session.

“We just would like a well thought out plan that takes care of a number of those requests for King County,” Morris said. “And there would be much broader support for that, versus the risk of bringing a proposal up just for KeyArena and the risk of having that fail on the floor if we try to have a vote.”

Marty McOmber, spokesperson for Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels, said the Legislature does not go far enough in its support of the KeyArena remodel.
“We feel that the window of opportunity for this proposal is right now,” McOmber said. “This offer from the potential ownership group isn’t going to get any better. We have committed as a city $75 million. I think it’s important for the state to signal its support as well.

“We’re up against this meeting with the NBA’s governing board. And without a strong package on the table to keep the Sonics here and invested in KeyArena, it’s going to be difficult.”

NBA owners will vote on the Sonics’ application to relocate to Oklahoma City during its semi-annual meeting April 17-18 in New York.

McOmber said the city will continue to work with Gregoire and lawmakers in Olympia this week to secure support for the $75 million before the session ends.

“There are obviously a number of efforts underway in Olympia to highlight the fact that this window of opportunity is now,” McOmber said.

McOmber also reiterated that senior leadership in Olympia has known and been continuously updated on the KeyArena proposal since before the session began in December, and that the investor group increased its offer from $75 to $150 million during that time.

Morris said the state’s involvement is not a deal breaker for a refurbished KeyArena proposal that could keep the Sonics in town.
“In the end the NBA has to decide if those community leaders are credible enough to make a long-term commitment to keep NBA basketball in Seattle,” Morris said. “Whether or not the state government is involved is a small question in the overall equation.”

Also, Republican Dino Rossi, who is expected to again run for governor against Gregoire come fall, came out in support of the proposal on Monday.
“I have been skeptical about stadium plans in the past, but this is the best proposal I’ve ever seen in this area,” Rossi said in a prepared statement. “No new state or county tax would be levied, and public money would only be spent on the public areas of the arena.”