Both ownerships want new venues.

The ownerships of the National Hockey League’s Arizona Coyotes and Major League Baseball’s Tampa Bay Rays appear to have come up with an odd strategy in the stadium or arena game. The Rays’ ownership group is interested in building a baseball park in St. Petersburg but has not made a firm commitment and could be looking for other sites within the Tampa Bay market to build a venue. The Arizona Coyotes’ ownership has its eyes set on perhaps buying a parcel of land in Mesa  which could potentially house a sports arena and entertainment district. But the business also put out what might be considered a contradictory statement that Mesa might not be the final landing spot for the NHL team. “In addition to this property in Mesa, the Club will continue to explore other potential sites in the East Valley.” The hockey club’s public relations department continued in its trying to sound very serious but non-committal statement that “the Coyotes remain committed to building the first privately funded sports facility in Arizona history and ensuring the Valley as the club’s permanent home.” Then the ownership went silent ending the statement with the words. “We will have no further comment at this time.”

In June, the hockey business claimed it identified a half-dozen potential sites to build an arena-village. The Arizona franchise lost a bid to build an arena-village in Tempe in May when voters struck down a referendum on the possibility of building a facility on a city dump in Tempe. The hockey club wants to avoid having a vote on public support for an arena and there would be no vote necessary in Mesa if the business does go ahead and buy the land. The NHL team and the MLB team are in need of new facilities and need a bidding war or rather options to get new venues.

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