Pistons Notes: New Arena Details, All-Star Game Chances

The Pistons‘ new arena deal will involve asking for up to $34.5MM in taxpayer-backed bonds, Louis Aguilar and Ian Thibodeau of The Detroit News report in a piece that includes the team’s 45 page agreement with the City Of Detroit. The franchise has also agreed to back up to $55MM in bonds as long as a “community center/practice facility” is built as well. The site of the proposed facility isn’t determined yet. According to an analysis conducted by the University of Michigan, the economic impact of the move is $596.2MM. That figure includes renovations to the new arena, the building of the practice facility and the cost of relocation for Pistons’ employees.

The Pistons have played at The Palace, which will remain open for concerts, since 1988. With the move, Detroit will have all four major sports playing within blocks of each other in its downtown.

Here’s more from Detroit

  • Owner Tom Gores hired sports agent/power broker Arn Tellem back in 2015 to start coordinating the effort to move the Pistons back downtown, Tony Paul of The Detroit News writes. Tellem is excited to be part of the movement. “We want to be all in on Detroit,” Tellem said. “We want to do right by the city and community here.” Tellem added that he believes as many as 2,000 jobs could be created by the move.
  • Commissioner Adam Silver said the team’s move to downtown has increased the city’s chances of getting an All-Star Game in the not-so distant future, Paul relays in the same piece. The Palace at Auburn Hills never hosted an All-Star Game.
  • The Pistons will also move their corporate office to downtown, Paul reports in the same piece.
  • Not all fans are thrilled about the relocation, Paul and James Hawkins of The Detroit News write in a collaborative piece. Proponents of the move cite the additional pregame and postgame opportunities, while those opposed to it say the traffic is going to be a major problem.

 

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