Arizona Coyotes Avoid Eviction From Home Arena

Just months after the Arizona Coyotes unveiled a $1.7 billion plan for a new Tempe complex, the City of Glendale threatened to lock the team out of its current home — Gila River Arena — for failing to pay arena charges and delinquent tax bills.

With more than $1.3 million in unpaid city and state taxes, the Arizona Department of Revenue filed a tax lien notice on Dec. 3 against IceArizona Hockey, the company that owns the Coyotes.

The team was apparently unaware of its debts, citing “human error” as a potential cause. It told The Athletic it would make sure that by Thursday morning, “the Arizona Coyotes are current on all of our bills and owe no state or local taxes whatsoever.”

The team followed through, paying all their bills Thursday.

• The club reportedly owed Glendale roughly $250,000 in unpaid city taxes.
• The state tax lien said the team had taxes owed from June 2020.

Coyotes’ History with Glendale

The team has called Glendale home since the 2003-04 season, but the city decided earlier this year not to renew its lease, making the 2021-22 season the Coyotes’ last in Gila River Arena.

In August, city manager Kevin Phelps wrote in a letter that the team owed more than $1.4 million to the arena as of July 17, and more than $300,000 of it was “over four months delinquent.”