Sen. Luke Kenley, R-Noblesville, a key fiscal leader in the state legislature, has been busy in the last week meeting with
members of the Indiana Pacers and Indianapolis Colts. The primary topic: The teams' financial challenges and the deficit faced
by their landlord, the Capital Improvement Board.
Kenley said he spent a couple of hours last Friday with Pacers President Jim Morris and Chief Financial Officer Kevin Bower, who were more forthcoming with their financials than ever before. The CIB is considering paying for Conseco Fieldhouse operating expenses.
Kenley had a sit-down with Colts leaders Monday, including Senior Executive Vice President Pete Ward and team attorney Dan Emerson. While Pacers officials are eager to renegotiate their lease in Conseco Fieldhouse, Kenley said the Colts do not want to renegotiate their Lucas Oil Stadium lease.
“Right now, I’m just trying to get their input,” Kenley said.
Kenley figures to be a key person in the CIB’s effort to work their way out from under its $37 million deficit. The state legislature and City-County Council will likely be called upon to approve various tax increases to help erase the deficit. The CIB does not have the authority to institute or raise taxes.
Kenley said he was surprised by the depths of the Pacers' losses, and added that non-basketball revenue has not been coming into the team’s coffers at expected levels. “They do make a profit off of concerts and other events, but it’s not as much as you’d think,” Kenley said. The cost of paying the acts, plus various middle men have cut into those profits greatly, Kenley added.
Colts officials expressed concern about a move to renegotiate their lease or to increase the local ticket tax above its current 6 percent, Kenley said. (The Indianapolis Indians are also worried about the ticket tax. To read more about that, see tomorrow’s print IBJ.) Colts officials also said team ownership has put $230 million of its own money into the team in recent years; $130 million in player payroll expenses and $100 million toward the new stadium. It could take a decade or more, even in the new stadium, Colts officials said, to recoup that outlay.
“The Colts wanted to remind us that the lease was built on the premise of allowing the team to put together a top-notch program,” Kenley said. “[Colts officials] said it’s always a challenge to field a competitive team in a small market, and they’ve worked real hard to field a winning team.
“I realize they have a right to the deal they have,” Kenley added. “We’re looking at the least painful way to raise the money we need.”
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Now the Pacers want the city's parking garage revenue too!
Please remember CIB's Bob Grand is the taxpayers advocate, not an employee of the Simons or Irsay.
P.S.
Jim Morris could you please repeat that you are not asking for a taxpayer bailout and are not threatenig to leave town;)
Pacers' Morris: Team has lost $200M
http://www.wthr.com/Global/story.asp?S=9837076&nav=9Tai
Taxpayers should be ashamed for asking the wealthy owners and players to cut expenses or pitch in for their own operating expenses.
How dare the public question why they get all the losses and expenses.
Doesn't the public know that hundreds of millions of dollars in player and management salaries and luxuries have to come from somewhere?
Simon's bought the team in 1983 for $11 million.
The combined net worth of Herb & Melvin Simon is $4.4 BILLION
Detail of Indiana Pacers $70 million in Player Salaries for 2008
http://hoopshype.com/salaries/indiana.htm
http://www.forbes.com/lists/2008/32/nba08_Indiana-Pacers_322134.html
Irsay bought the team in 1972 for $15 million.
Jim Irsay's net worth exceeds $1.1 BILLION.
Detail of Colt's $132 million in Player Salaries for 2008
http://www.sportscity.com/NFL/Indianapolis-Colts-Salaries
http://www.forbes.com/lists/2008/30/sportsmoney_nfl08_Indianapolis-Colts_309104.html
http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2008/0929/083.html
No. 5 Indianapolis Indians
Indianapolis, Ind.
Value: $22.2 million
Revenue: $9.0 million
Operating Income:* $1.9 million
League/Class: International League/AAA
Major League Affiliate: Pittsburgh Pirates
Owner: publicly traded
Stadium Name: Victory Field
Stadium Cost:** $20 million
Year Stadium Opened: 1996
Public team recently increased dividend for its few shareholders to $350 from $200.
http://www.forbes.com/2008/08/06/baseball-minors-sacramento-biz-sports-cz_mo_0806minors.html
Additionally CIB officials could not say whether the Pacers have made good on their $57 million promised contribution to Conseco Fieldhouse, which carried some conditions based on team revenue, but the team did get to keep the $40 million Conseco paid for naming rights?
Makes me sick. I would rather put money into amateur teams like the Naptown Roller girls or other professional teams that have positive images like the Indiana Fevers.
The biggest part of the problem festering in the sporting world is the salaries of the participants. If the Unions don't give in to demands and needs to lower wages significantly, they can begin to kiss goodbye a good number of teams around the country in several sports. Then who wins?
Bet it will be many, many years before we see a groundbreaking on a facility like Lucas.
So yes Teresa the Fever players are not caught at strip clubs or touting guns but their existence is solely because of the funding of the NBA. Which would lead one to make the assumption that if things get worse with the NBA and things have to be cut the WNBA might be one of those things to go.