Thurs. Press Conf.

Loyal1 · 03-17-2005, 08:02 AM

Garber & Uncle Dave are in town to announce "out-of-the-box" thinking that will may become the model for building stadiums.

8:30am at the Gov. Mansion.

Maybe media outlets will provide coverage.

bordelais7 · 03-17-2005, 08:28 AM

http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,600119274,00.html

2 minutes till scheduled conference time. This had better be good. I got up 20 minutes earlier than usual.

SoccerPrime · 03-17-2005, 08:39 AM

I was hoping MLSnet would cover it, nope.

Anyone else seeing it?

Dadof3 · 03-17-2005, 08:40 AM

I just spoke with 1280 ("the Zone"). They will not be live, but have someone getting sound. As soon as he gets back they will cut it and get it on the air.

clarette · 03-17-2005, 08:44 AM

The Trib said they'll be posting an update online as soon as they get the news...

bordelais7 · 03-17-2005, 08:45 AM

Wonder if Ellinger will talk about it in 15 mins (http://www.realsaltlake.org/forums/showthread.php?t=582)

AreliusII · 03-17-2005, 08:55 AM

Reports: SLC funding plan in the works
By Jason Halpin / MLSnet.com Staff

Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman will reportedly announce Thursday morning a working agreement with Real Salt Lake and Major League Soccer to develop a landmark way to subsidize a soccer-specific stadium for the team.
Huntsman called a press conference for 8:30 a.m. MT Thursday at the Governor's Mansion in Salt Lake City, with RSL Owner David W. Checketts, Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber and Utah state Sen. Curtis Bramble set to join him. Huntsman is expected to announce plans to create a unique public-private funding partnership for the stadium, a plan that Bramble told the Deseret Morning News is "new and heretofore untried."

Bramble and the Utah legislature recently laid down a significant roadblock to an RSL stadium by passing a bill that would prevent Utah cities from using state Redevelopment Agency funds to subsidize sports stadiums.

While land costs in Murray, Utah -- one of two leading candidates to be the home of RSL -- are low enough to allow the city to fund a stadium without RDA money, the land on which the other candidate, Salt Lake City, would build the stadium would cost an estimated $20 million. That money would have to come from the RDA. Bramble, the sponsor of the bill, contends that using RDA money for stadiums diverts funds away from schools.

Both the Morning News and The Salt Lake Tribune reported that Huntsman is not expected to veto Bramble's bill. Instead, the governor reportedly plans to search for a new avenue to fund the stadium in partnership with RSL, one that would allow Salt Lake City to remain in the running for the stadium.

"We have an opportunity to do something different here, create a special mechanism that might even become the model for [funding] future sports teams," Garber told the Tribune.

The proposed stadium is estimated to cost a total of $60 million. Checketts has said he and the club will pay for half of that with private funds, with public money expected to cover the remainder.

Neither RSL nor MLS had an official comment on Huntsman's impending announcement Thursday morning.

SoccerPrime · 03-17-2005, 08:57 AM

Yeah we know this.
Whats new this morning?

clarette · 03-17-2005, 09:05 AM

If anyone's dying to know, here are the phone numbers for the Gov's office:

801-538-1000
800-705-2464

AreliusII · 03-17-2005, 09:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SoccerPrime

Yeah we know this.
Whats new this morning?

Nothing. That’s the news.