Sacramento’s Arena funding plan – Think Long – has taken another step forward. In a rare unanimous vote, the Sacramento City Council approved 11 firms who responded to a request for qualifications.
Those firms will now compete amongst themselves to develop the winning bid to take over parking services in Sacramento. The parking deal remains an instrumental part of funding a new, downtown arena for the city.
It remains unclear how much money the parking deal can raise, but some estimates range as high as $240 million. The total cost of the arena is estimated to be $387. But it’s the reliance upon estimation that had osme members of the council vote yes, and they made it clear that their yes vote now does not mean that the plan is green lighted to completion. More questions remain and as hard facts become available, votes could change.
From the Sacramento Bee:
By a unanimous vote, the Sacramento City Council voted Tuesday night to allow staff to enter into detailed talks with 11 firms seeking to lease downtown parking. An agreement with one of those companies is being counted on to provide up to half of the $387 million bill for a new downtown sports arena.
In approving deeper talks with those parking firms, the City Council showed it supports moving forward on an attempt led by Mayor Kevin Johnson to create a financing plan for an arena by March 1 and avoid losing the Sacramento Kings.
Read the full article here.