On Tuesday, the Phoenix City Council is scheduled to receive an update on the Talking Stick Resort Arena. Leaders are expected to hear from a consultant about different options and costs to renovate the 25-year-old facility or build a new one using taxpayer funds.
Councilmembers should also learn the latest on negotiations with the Phoenix Suns. The team’s owner Robert Sarver, initially said the Suns would need a new arena, but a few months ago, he told azcentral.com that upgrading the downtown arena was the most economically viable alternative for the city and team.
When the council approved a new tax on hotel stays and car rentals to build a new home for the Phoenix Suns downtown, Rich Dozer was the team’s chief operating officer.
"There were people throwing darts at you know the Suns, at the politicians, and there were some things that transpired out of that," Dozer said. "The city had a whole bunch of issues with it and decided that they weren’t ever going to do anything like that again without putting it to a public vote.”
The city charter requires voter approval if Phoenix wants to spend more than $3 million in public funds on a new arena, but there’s no such requirement for renovations.
Dozer thinks the city and the team will contribute to upgrade the arena, but doesn’t know how the costs will be split.