Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels did meet with the Seattle PI Editorial on Tuesday to discuss his view of the Sonics situation. Let everybody you know,Mayor Greg Nickels says he's not interested in negotiating a buyout of the Sonics' final two years of their KeyArena lease.
Thank you for the leadership on this issue Mr. Nickels.
Let the mayor know that you support him by contacting him here:http://www.seattle.gov/mayor/citizen_response.htm
The Seattle PI story, By GREG JOHNS, P-I REPORTER (read here):
Mayor Greg Nickels says he's not interested in negotiating a buyout of the Sonics' final two years of their KeyArena lease, instead vowing to continue the court battle to keep the NBA franchise in Seattle in the hopes that local ownership eventually can step forward.
Nickels, meeting Tuesday with the Seattle P-I editorial board, largely avoided specifics on the Sonics' situation, but continually made it clear that any long-term hopes for the franchise in Seattle rest on forcing a sale of the team by Clay Bennett and his Oklahoma City partners.
While the city can't demand such a transaction, it can make life difficult for the owners, who face large financial losses on the court while also battling the city in a lawsuit over the lease.
"I think the longer they're here, the better our chances are," Nickels said. "That's the part we can help play. I think there are local folks interested in putting ownership together, and if they have more time to do that, there is the opportunity to convince the existing ownership that there are greener fields somewhere else."
The Seattle PI editorial (read here), they effectively wrap words around the hot gas that came out of David Stern:
Sorry, but even the ûberrich don't get everything handed to them for the kind of minimal effort at civic involvement and alliance-building practiced by Bennett's group. Standing on a corner holding a will-stay-for-cash sign doesn't count.
Stern, who makes it a habit to be semi-factual in talking about Seattle, managed to come off as if he believed the owners had made sincere efforts here, notwithstanding the quarter-million-dollar fine he had to hand out for one of them saying he always planned to walk. We suppose that's part of Stern's job.
Media reports have commented on what Stern said, I thank the Seattle PI for having the mayor come in to discuss his position with them. Clearly, they came away, and gave me the impression, that they are in support of his efforts.
The Seattle PI editorial, again (read here), they put a finger on the button being pushed that may have lead to the hot gas emmission from Stern:
Applying creativity is also part of the job for the NBA and local political and business leaders. The city is vigorously engaged in litigation (we are mighty curious to see what legal discovery will turn up), but Mayor Greg Nickels is clearly inviting a new run at local ownership. Some City Council members are talking about what it would take for the Sonics to buy out the team's KeyArena lease.
In the words of legendary boxing referee Mills Lane, "Let's get it on!".
This ends up getting talked about in a variety of threads, let's do that here.