According to Ryan Lillis, Tony Bizjak, and Dale Kasler of the Sacramento Bee, a deal for a new arena at Downtown Plaza in Sacramento still hasn't been reached between city officials and billionaire Ron Burkle. The city had placed a self-imposed deadline to reach an agreement by today, but nothing appears imminent.
City Manager John Shirey, who wanted a term sheet that contained points of a deal today in time for review before a city council meeting next week, spoke about where he currently stands in these talks: "We continue to make progress and have productive discussions with the Investor Group…It is important to get this right and not rush to make an artificial deadline. The bottom line for me is to get the best deal possible while adhering to the Council’s adopted core principles, including a city commitment comparable to last year, no new taxes, and protection for the General Fund."
They couldn’t get an arena for years, and they suddenly expect to get one now?