The Portland city council received an extended set of pleas Wednesday to move forward on an arena renovation deal with the Trail Blazers for the Moda Center, but substantive changes to potential deal points are certain to happen over the next week.
The legislative body heard several hours of public comment Wednesday in favor of the city participating in a $600 million renovation deal for the 31-year-old downtown arena. Comments arrived from local residents, many wearing Blazers gear, representing a variety of local sectors, including labor, grassroots politics, travel and tourism, business, and even other pro sports beyond the NBA.
“A vote to fund the renovation of the Moda Center will send a message, loud and clear, that Portland is the epicenter of women’s sports,” said Clare Hamill, president of the WNBA’s Portland Fire. The RAJ Sports–owned club, which also controls the NWSL’s Portland Thorns, is not a party to the arena negotiations but plays at the arena and is strongly advocating the proposed upgrades.
Added Multnomah County chair Jessica Vega Pederson, speaking before city counterparts, “Despite legitimate concerns, and a frustrating negotiating process with the Blazers, this is a deal we must get done. And it must be a deal that benefits our entire community.”
The city council is considering a nonbinding term sheet, with a vote potentially happening next week on a document that would represent a formal start to negotiations with the Blazers, which operate the publicly owned arena.
The funding plan calls for $120 million in city funding for the renovations, joining additional funds from the state of Oregon and Multnomah County, with the latter jurisdiction set to vote on its portion Thursday.
Deal Points
Local leaders are attempting to lower the rhetoric in the negotiations, after prior friction between the city and Blazers, and with Mayor Keith Wilson—inflamed in no small part by team owner Tom Dundon’s insistence that the Blazers not pay for any of the upgrades. Despite that, council president Jamie Dunphy said there is still a lack of clarity from the team side.
“We were glad to have our friends from the Blazers join us in the work session last week, but as to the question of what the Blazers want to see in this term sheet, for the future of the team in Portland, we are still waiting for the team to engage,” said Dunphy.
Meanwhile, the council plans to introduce several amendments to the developing term sheet. Among the new terms that will be considered:
- A ticket tax increase from 6% to 7%, with those funds going to the city.
- A stipulation that parking revenue from non-Blazers events goes to the city.
- A mandate for “street pricing” on concessions in the arena.
Before the council meeting Wednesday, the Blazers publicly urged fans to attend, wear team gear, and speak out in favor of the taxpayer-funded renovations.
A Paper Trail?
The city council meeting came a day after KATU, Portland’s ABC station, revealed internal emails between the council and the Blazers over the term sheet for the team’s lease at the Moda Center.
The email exchange, which was received through a public records request, started June 15, after the city and team sat down for a negotiating session and before the rift spilled into the media. Ken McGair, the city’s attorney, sent several questions to the team to address.
Among the city’s concerns were whether the team would contribute to Moda Center renovations, pay for any cost overruns, pay rent, and agree to labor and community benefits and agreements.
Ultimately, the Blazers never responded in writing. Team lead legal counsel Zandria Conyers forwarded the questions to team leaders and added that the questions were “answered again today and 100 times before.”
Conyers said at Thursday’s city council meeting that the team was handling its answers in a calculated manner to avoid a potential lawsuit, even though the mayor and council said they had no interest in suing the team.
Blazers president Dewayne Hankins replied to Conyers shortly after that the team should discuss “whether we even respond to this.”
While no written response was ultimately given to the team, the emails indicate the questions were answered verbally at a bargaining session.
At last Thursday’s council meeting, Hankins reiterated the team has no interest in paying for any renovations to Moda Center.
“The team has already invested nearly $1 billion in the construction and maintenance of the building in its 30 years,” Hankins said.
