Michael Ault
Ask 10 people if Sacramento needs a new entertainment and sports complex and you’ll likely get 10 opposing viewpoints and even more opinions that follow.
For the Downtown Sacramento Partnership, there is no question that our region needs – in fact, deserves – such a facility. We believe this because over and over again, we’ve seen the economic, cultural and social benefits such a complex can deliver to a metropolitan area.
It should be no surprise that we believe a Sacramento facility should be located downtown. Downtown complexes anchor regional economies and make good business sense.
Sacramento’s arena saga has peaked many times, only to die and be revived all too often. We see today’s debate not as a sequel to an old story, but as an essential opportunity for our region. However, Sacramento risks missing an opportunity to develop a facility without direct taxpayer subsidies if we don’t move forward with a feasible project quickly. We applaud Mayor Kevin Johnson for reinvigorating attempts to bring a world-class entertainment and sports complex to our city.
Such a complex would serve as a regional venue, drawing year-round performances, arts and cultural programs, family attractions, and amateur and professional sporting events on a scale that we are unable to attract today.
Further, when located in the heart of a region, a sports and entertainment complex can take advantage of a wealth of existing infrastructure.
Not everyone supports a new arena and of those who do, some aren’t convinced downtown is the right location. We believe there are strong arguments for downtown.
Throughout the nation, there are many examples of entertainment facilities, centrally located, that have given new life to urban centers and the surrounding region. Think about Boston, New York, Chicago, Toronto, Denver, San Francisco and Baltimore.
If you’ve been to Wrigley, Fenway or Coors Field, you know what I mean. Less iconic examples, but catalysts all the same, include sports and entertainment facilities in Phoenix, Los Angeles, Charlotte, Salt Lake and Indianapolis.
Less than 10 years after the opening of Phoenix’s US Airways Arena, over $2.5 billion in additional private investments occurred. Downtown arts and cultural venues saw a 20 percent increase in attendance.
Since the construction of the Staples Center in 1999, a blighted area of downtown Los Angeles benefited from more than 5.6 million square feet of new retail, residential, hotel and performance space.
Yet, with plenty of successes to point to, we still find ourselves stuck with the aging and substandard Arco Arena.
Worse, we still sit in the midst of a political stalemate despite diligent and well-meaning attempts over recent years by the city of Sacramento, the NBA, the business community and many local leaders and neighborhoods.
Today, we are encouraged by the number of proposals submitted to the Sacramento First Task Force. We are optimistic that current discussions will stay cooperative, clear and focused on the key issues. These include the project’s financial viability, the optimal site location, and the potential for job creation and economic stimulus.
Without question, the whole region stands to lose if the issue gets mired down in discussions around the complex’s primary tenant, the Sacramento Kings. We could all lose in a fight that creates friction between neighborhoods or ties up an already complicated project in exhaustive political debate.
For this reason, we appreciate efforts to accelerate the deadline of the mayor’s volunteer task force. We commend the City Council for directing staff to start work on the major policy, financial, legal, legislative and entitlement measures needed so Sacramento can move on a preferred plan as quickly as possible.