TEMPE, Ariz. — Starting next week, Tempe voters will begin receiving ballots in the mail for the upcoming election to decide the future of the Arizona Coyotes arena deal.
On Thursday, a few dozen protesters held signs outside the Tempe Chamber of Commerce, where Coyotes officials held a press conference on the deal.
“Fundamentally, it is subsidizing a sports arena, and it is paying off the debt of a billionaire Alex Meruelo," former Tempe vice mayor Lauren Kuby said, standing on the side of the road.
“If you don't believe us, listen to your neighbors, listen to your leaders," Coyotes CEO Xavier Gutierrez said. "And what they are saying is, this is the right project. This is the right deal. And we are the right team to execute it.”
The Coyotes and their owner, billionaire Alex Meruelo, want to build a new arena and entertainment district near Rio Salado Parkway and Priest Drive.
The arena would be the centerpiece, surrounded by retail, entertainment and residential space. Currently, the property is home to a city-owned landfill.
If voters pass three propositions during a May 16 special election, the $2.1 billion project would be built on the banks of the Salt River, just West of Tempe Town Lake.
Meruelo has said the development would be privately funded, but Tempe would give Meruelo $215 million to reimburse him for cleaning up the site. That money would come from new taxes collected from the property.
Tempe would also agree to not charge the arena itself property taxes for 30 years.
“We are united and saying this project is not right for our city. We didn't ask for it and don't want it," Kuby said.
But Gutierrez said the project makes sense financially for everyone and would provide jobs, tax revenue, and financial benefit to the city.
“We have not only done our analysis, the city has as well," he said. "The city underwrote this; the city approved this already.”
But the project faces opposition from those who worry about the money and the impact on the city.
The site sits directly under a major flight path to Sky Harbor. A similar stadium proposal was torpedoed in the 1990s when the Arizona Cardinals wanted to build their stadium in a similar location.
If the propositions do not pass, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, who was also at the press conference Thursday, hinted that it would not be good news for the team.
"That's something I'd not like to contemplate right now," Bettman said. "We're hopeful that they pass."
Ballots for the special election will be mailed starting April 19. Election day is May 16.
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