By DANIEL DULLUM
Sports Radio Service
Monday, November 14, 2016

AP photo: Arizona Coyotes will have a new building at Arizona State University a computer enhanced animated photo gives you an idea what the outside of the arena would look like in Tempe

GLENDALE, Ariz. – After months of speculation, the NHL Arizona Coyotes have finally dotted the I’s and crossed the T’s on an agreement to relocate within the Valley of the Sun.

In a statement issued by the Coyotes Monday, the team said it has entered into “an exclusive” negotiation agreement with Catellus Development Corporation to work towards the finalization of a new, 16,000-plus seat NHL arena and commercial development project on 58 acres in the Arizona State University Athletic Facilities District along Tempe Town Lake.

The proposed arena site is the northwest corner of East Rio Salado Parkway and South McClintock Drive, easily accessible for fans in the East Valley who have expressed frustration through the years of battling traffic on weeknights to attend games at Gila River Arena (located next to University of Phoenix Stadium) in Glendale.

The Coyotes had been seeking a new home in the East Valley after their tenuous relationship with the City of Glendale eventually fell apart. The team was a financial ward of the NHL for four seasons after the league fished it out of a tangled bankruptcy situation and sold it to a group headed by Anthony LeBlanc.

“Over the past year we have been exhaustive in our research regarding the most optimal location for our new home in the Valley,” LeBlanc, the Coyotes’ president and CEO, said. “While we have tremendous fans all across the greater Phoenix metro area, not to mention the entire state, it became clear that the East Valley is home to a majority of our fans and corporate partners. Our fans in the West Valley have shown us tremendous support over the past 13 years, and we look forward to working with them as we transition to our new home in the future.”

The initial plan includes constructing a 16,000-plus seat arena for the Coyotes, with an attached 4,000-seat multi-sport arena. The adjacent arena will be utilized by Sun Devil Athletics, Coyotes practices, youth hockey practices and games, and other community events.

Catellus Development Corporation is the master developer for the ASU Athletic Facilities District. With ASU men’s hockey now an NCAA Division I sport, the Sun Devils needed an improved facility to grow the program and help them land in a premiere conference.

The Western Collegiate Hockey Association, the Big 10, and the National Collegiate Hockey Conference have all been mentioned as possibilities for ASU hockey to land. The Sun Devils will play as a Division I independent in 2016-17, and are expected to join a hockey-specific conference in 2017-18.

The Sun Devils currently play most of their home games at Oceanside Ice Arena, which has a seating capacity of 840. ASU also plays select games at Gila River Arena.

The project is expected to “help grow the sport at the grass roots level.” Eventually, a new hotel and other related amenities will be finalized as part of the second phase of construction.

And, with the Coyotes’ desire to leave Glendale for a variety of business and marketing reasons, the agreement appears to be a win-win for both entities.

“As the first major partner for the ASU Athletic Facilities District, the Coyotes campus will generate momentum for this innovative, urban corridor,” said Greg Weaver, Executive Vice President for Catellus Development Corporation. “We are excited to partner with the Coyotes for their new facility.”
The agreement between ASU and the Coyotes provides for a period ending no later than June 30, 2017, to create the overall budget, design and operational plan for the development. The Coyotes said they will now focus on finalizing a partnership with other public sector constituents, including the State of Arizona and the City of Tempe.

Gila River Arena, located 12.5 miles northwest of downtown Phoenix, opened on Dec. 26, 2003, with a seating capacity of 18,300. The Coyotes moved there after playing their first seven seasons at Talking Stick Resort Arena (formerly America West) following their 1996 relocation from Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Because America West Arena was built specifically to the Suns’ specs, there were numerous obstructed seats for the hockey configuration. This, along with other factors, led to the Coyotes’ desire to have their own arena, and at the time, Glendale was the only city in the Valley willing to build it.

Talking Stick Resort Arena is the home of the NBA Suns, WNBA Mercury and Arena Football League Rattlers. The Suns, who are rumored to be interested in their own new downtown arena, had not expressed a desire to share a new facility with the Coyotes.

Precise details on the cost and financing were not immediately available for the arena, which is expected to be completed to start the 2019-20 season. The Coyotes will reportedly negotiate an extension of its current lease until the new facility opens.

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