Sacramento, CA – The city of Sacramento took a major step forward in its attempt to keep the Kings basketball franchise in town.
On Tuesday night, the city council voted in favor of a term sheet between the city and an investor group to allow the Kings to have a new arena in Downtown Sacramento.
The approval may help towards the larger goal of retaining the Kings, whose current ownership has a deal in place to sell the team to a group that plans to relocate the team to Seattle.
"[Tuesday] is a major milestone for our community and the region," said Sacramento city manager John Shirey. "The city has done its part in helping to keep the Kings in Sacramento by approving a term sheet that will lead to the development of a new Entertainment and Sports Center Downtown."
The total development cost for the arena is an estimated $447 million, with a variety of city resources paying for $258 million of the total.
"We believe this will be persuasive in convincing the NBA to approve the sale of the Kings to this same investor group and to keep the team in Sacramento," said Shirey.
Mayor Kevin Johnson and the investor group will present the proposal to the NBA Relocation Committee on April 3, with the Board of Governors considering the issue on April 18.
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