The failed Arizona Coyotes Owner Now Wants To Put A Minor League Hockey team in Reno.
When we last left the owner of the National Hockey League’s Arizona Coyotes franchise, Alex Meruelo, he was waving goodbye to the Phoenix market with a $1 billion departing gift in his hand. His hockey business was sold and was moved to Salt Lake City. His plan to restart his business in the Phoenix market dashed because he was unable to build an arena in the Phoenix metropolitan area. But Meruelo is not done in the sports world. He is the owner of the American Hockey League’s Tucson Roadrunners and is looking to build an arena-village within his Grand Sierra Resort property in Reno, Nevada that could eventually house his present-Tucson business. He is hoping to build an arena-village in Reno, Nevada. The arena would seat more than 10,000 people and its main tenant could be the University of Nevada, Reno’s men’s college basketball team. All Meruelo wants now is a government handout from Reno officials and he is looking for $97 million.
Meruelo’s Power Sports Development submitted an application for tax-increment financing for the estimated $1-billion arena project. Tax-increment financing is a mechanism whereby sales tax collected within a defined district is kicked back to the developer of the property instead of going into a municipality’s general fund. It is a widely used gadget by municipalities when dealing with sports owners who want to build office, residential and retail space around a sports venue. Meruelo’s project would also include a satellite ice rink, a parking garage and workforce housing. Reno is the 102nd biggest market in the United States. It is a big enough market for hockey’s Double A ECHL and the ECHL placed a franchise Stateline which is on the Nevada-California line next to Lake Tahoe or about 22 miles away from Reno. Meruelo is staying in the hockey business.
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Alex Meruelo
