THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, January 16, 1997 TAG: 9701160242
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A10 EDITION: FINAL
SERIES: NHL In Hampton Roads
SOURCE: BY HARRY MINIUM AND ROBERT LITTLE, STAFF WRITERS
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: 62 lines
The citizens of Hampton Roads apparently will have a forum to speak about whether the region builds a $143 million arena for a proposed National Hockey League expansion team.
Brad Face, chairman of the Hampton Roads Sports Facility Authority, said his group will hold at least one public hearing on the proposed 20,000-seat downtown Norfolk arena. Authority bylaws require that a public hearing be held within 30 miles of the arena site 60 days before voting on a site for an arena.
The 15-member authority would issue bonds for $113 million to help finance the arena. Face said the site and date of the hearing have not been determined.
Face also said the authority's decision on whether to approve the arena bonds will hinge in part on an ongoing season-ticket sale by the Hampton Roads Rhinos, as the team would be called. The Rhinos sold 5,192 season tickets their first nine weeks and hope to sell 5,000 more in the next six weeks.
``My position personally is that the function of the authority is to respond to the decision of the marketplace in a responsible way,'' Face said. ``As we proceed, it will be determined whether this market wants this team.''
The Rhinos, who would be owned by Charlotte businessman George Shinn, have an arena deal with the Hampton Roads Partnership, but the deal must be ratified by 15 local governments, the Sports Facility Authority and the state government.
In other developments Wednesday:
Norfolk Del. Jerrauld Jones said he would submit legislation to the General Assembly later this week that would allow the sales tax and income tax generated by the arena to be spent directly on its construction costs.
Jones said he expects little opposition, and an informal sampling of legislators from other areas of the state seemed to back him up.
``We'll wait and see what it looks like and consider everything through the appropriate channels, but I don't think there's any groundswell of opposition,'' said Sen. William Wampler, a Republican from Bristol.
Face will meet with members of the Partnership Friday to try to determine the region's next step. It is unclear when the cities and the Sports Facility Authority will take up the arena issue or who will lead the public campaign to try to convince localities to approve funding for the arena.
Tom Ward, who has led the Rhinos' season-ticket sale and put together most of Shinn's presentation to NHL owners Tuesday in New York, said the Rhinos will kick their season-ticket sale back into high gear next week.
Ward, Shinn and others will travel Friday to San Jose for the NHL All-Star game to lobby NHL officials. The NHL is expected to award two to four franchises later this year.
Ward said his first priority is to urge corporations to purchase tickets and luxury suites. The Rhinos have sold 25 suites, 15 short of their goal.
Three regional business groups last month formed a task force to push corporate season tickets, and so far have met with limited success.
``That's the number one item on our agenda next week,'' Ward said. ``We've only hit the tip of the iceberg here (with corporations). We haven't even canvassed the Peninsula yet.
``Now that the presentations are over, I think the other cities will start selling tickets. We're ahead of everyone and we've got to maintain that lead if the NHL is going to award Hampton Roads a franchise.''
KEYWORDS: NHL FRANCHISE ARENA