<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">With their proposal for a KeyArena expansion stalling, Sonics officials are looking across Lake Washington for a better deal. Sonics President Wally Walker and Executive Vice President Terry McLaughlin met Wednesday with Bellevue city officials to tell them the team is talking to city business leaders about building an arena in Bellevue. McLaughlin confirmed the team has talked to "several business interests" that "have been enthusiastic and supportive of the idea." Team officials said recently they were looking at possible homes away from KeyArena, but the meeting in Bellevue is the first public confirmation of talks with another city. One Bellevue business leader said the Sonics are just using the city to put pressure on Seattle. The team has also been in "preliminary discussions" with other cities looking to land an NBA franchise, McLaughlin said, but he would not identify them or the business interests. Sonics owners have grown increasingly frustrated with Seattle city officials and state legislators who have so far failed to unite behind a plan to renovate KeyArena and negotiate a more lucrative lease for the team. The NBA Sonics and WNBA Storm franchises, led by Starbucks Chairman Howard Schultz, say they've lost $58 million since 2001, and they blame the lease, which requires arena revenues to be split with the city. Seattle Deputy Mayor Tim Ceis said Seattle remains committed to trying to work out a deal to keep the team at KeyArena. "We think it's the best solution for the Sonics and the region," he said. As for the Bellevue meeting, "I think they're flirting with each other," Ceis said. "And if Bellevue can come up with $400 million to build them a new arena, more power to them." Walker and McLaughlin, joined by team consultant Ken Johnson, met with Bellevue City Manager Steve Sarkozy and Deputy City Manager Brad Miyake for about an hour Wednesday afternoon, city officials said. The meeting was a "courtesy call" to notify the city about the team's discussions with business leaders, city spokesman Tim Waters said. The Sonics have "nothing more than a generic concept of the possibility that an arena might be developed" in the city, McLaughlin said. Sarkozy declined to comment on a possible Sonics move. The Sonics owners are trying to win support for a taxpayer-financed $200 million expansion of KeyArena, and they also want a more lucrative lease to replace the current one, which expires in 2010. That deal was negotiated as part of a $76 million arena makeover completed in 1995, and requires the Sonics to split several million dollars a year in arena revenue with the city, which owns the building. McLaughlin said the team would still work with Seattle to see if a KeyArena deal can be reached. But he said time is running out, given the looming expiration of the team's lease. Bob Wallace, chief executive officer of Wallace Properties and one of Bellevue's most prominent businessmen, said he has not heard from the Sonics about a new arena in his home city. But Wallace, a board member of the Public Facilities District, which owns Safeco Field, said the chance of a new arena in Bellevue is "virtually zero" because city leaders are too financially conservative and would never devote significant funds to a private project. A new arena, with land purchase and construction from the ground up, could cost as much as $500 million, Wallace said. Private developers could not afford to foot the whole bill. "I'd love to see" the Sonics in Bellevue, Wallace said, but "it's not a credible proposal." If the finances could be worked out, one potential arena location is the former site of a Safeway distribution center, just east of downtown, city insiders say. The 75-acre property sits near Interstate 405 and Bellevue-Redmond Road and is slated for redevelopment. This is not the first time the Sonics have talked to Bellevue, which has a booming downtown and has grown into a regional player. In 1987, the team, then owned by Barry Ackerley, worked with the city on a combined convention center-sports arena downtown, but the team pulled out of the talks and eventually reached a new deal with Seattle for the KeyArena makeover. Wallace said Bellevue city leaders have lingering bitterness about the failed deal, and he thinks the Sonics are just using the city again as "leverage against Seattle" for a new lease. </div> Source
i don't know. that's kind of a depressing thought. i mean. i live like...30/25 ish minutes away from the seattle key arena...and bellevue is closer to me and all..but...eh. bellevue is just a rich city. seattle is truly the heart of washington. i believe anyways. that's retarded...hope seattle get their act together, i don't wanna go to some bellevue sonics games...:-
I lived in Seattle for most of my life, and it would just sound wierd saying Bellevue Sonics. Plus Seattle has the Space Needle!! Seattle SuuuuPer Sonics!!
bellevue sonics?..nooooooooooooooooooooooooo.. man i would be pissed if we went to the burbs, keep this team in seattle damnit!
Haters...... I live in Bellevue, it's the coolest city in Washington. Don't hate on the suburbs. I'd rather walk back to my car in safety after a game than have to deal with 100s of people playing beat up musical instruments and begging for my money. I love Seattle, but the Sonics in Bellevue would be like a dream come true. 425 for life.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Jurassic:</div><div class="quote_post">Haters...... I live in Bellevue, it's the coolest city in Washington. Don't hate on the suburbs. I'd rather walk back to my car in safety after a game than have to deal with 100s of people playing beat up musical instruments and begging for my money. I love Seattle, but the Sonics in Bellevue would be like a dream come true. 425 for life.</div> ****ing stuck up rich suburbanite. You can't deal with the side effects of being able to live excessively? Disgusting.
If the Sonics moved to Bellevue, chances are that it would attract alot of drifters anyways, seeing as they hang around stadiums and arenas due to the amount of people attending games. P.S. It's all about the South Sound. 253 4 Lyfe
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Seattle.:</div><div class="quote_post">****ing stuck up rich suburbanite. You can't deal with the side effects of being able to live excessively? Disgusting.</div> Oh please..... My parents are charitable people and raised me the same way. I just don't have any desire to potentially finance the crack or booze addiction of some guy on the street with no guarantee as to where my spare change would be going. You think I'm disgusting? What's disgusting is having to empty your own septic tank, now back to the trailer park with you! What exactly are the side effects of me living "excessively"? I'm sure they exist, but I highly doubt that they affect you (Seattle has suburbs too, moron) so stop whining just for the sake of reading your own words. Shard you are right of course, an arena in Bellevue would of course attract drifters. That's why I wasn't 100% serious about the Sonics moving to Bellevue being a way of making the after game experience more enjoyable. I'm not seriously bothered by the people asking for change. I almost always have extra tickets and give them to the people trying to make money outside the stadium. So I guess technically their getting to see a Sonics game for free is one of the side effects of my living excessively. What a shame. <div class="quote_poster">Quoting Shard:</div><div class="quote_post">P.S. It's all about the South Sound. 253 4 Lyfe </div> Isn't Tacoma part of the 253? I heard that is one place the Sonics might move as well. But don't you think that the imfamous "aroma of Tacoma" might affect their play? Haha jk.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Jurassic:</div><div class="quote_post"> Isn't Tacoma part of the 253? I heard that is one place the Sonics might move as well. But don't you think that the imfamous "aroma of Tacoma" might affect their play? Haha jk.</div> We like to downplay the includance of Tacoma in the 253. Pierce County doesn't count. Just South King .
if the sonics move to tacoma...i'd never be able to drive that far. that's an hour & a half drive...man! i wanna move to seattle someday even though it's kinda urban & yeah...not exactly up-scale...but probably for college and maybe even living there someday. i live in the 425 too...lol, we're probably one of the richer parts of washington.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Jurassic:</div><div class="quote_post">Haters...... I live in Bellevue, it's the coolest city in Washington. Don't hate on the suburbs. I'd rather walk back to my car in safety after a game than have to deal with 100s of people playing beat up musical instruments and begging for my money. I love Seattle, but the Sonics in Bellevue would be like a dream come true. 425 for life.</div> I could careless about the city or how cool it is. I just like Seattle and the name would totatly kill it for me. I like the name Seattle Sonics. Plus you guys aint go no space needle lol.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Jurassic:</div><div class="quote_post">Oh please..... My parents are charitable people and raised me the same way. I just don't have any desire to potentially finance the crack or booze addiction of some guy on the street with no guarantee as to where my spare change would be going.[/b]</div> So don't finance it, but to say you don't like to have to walk by homeless people is pretty disgusting to me. They are human beings and their misfortune has a direct relationship to the kind of people who live in Bellevue and have way too much money. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">You think I'm disgusting? What's disgusting is having to empty your own septic tank, now back to the trailer park with you! What exactly are the side effects of me living "excessively"? I'm sure they exist, but I highly doubt that they affect you (Seattle has suburbs too, moron) so stop whining just for the sake of reading your own words.</div> There is a limited amount of money in the world when someone has way more than they need that causes other people to have way less then they need. And no it doesn't affect me as much as other people, but just because I'm calling you out for being a rich snob doesn't mean I'm whining for the sake of reading my own words. I don't really know what you're trying to say with that whole trailer park thing. I don't live in one so if you're trying to make fun of me or something you failed. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Shard you are right of course, an arena in Bellevue would of course attract drifters. That's why I wasn't 100% serious about the Sonics moving to Bellevue being a way of making the after game experience more enjoyable. I'm not seriously bothered by the people asking for change. I almost always have extra tickets and give them to the people trying to make money outside the stadium. So I guess technically their getting to see a Sonics game for free is one of the side effects of my living excessively. What a shame.</div> Wow, you're such a charitable person. You give extra tickets to scalpers. Now there's some true compassion. Those guys aren't poor and they most definitely aren't honest. I would never consider that an act of charity.
