Word comes down today that gazillionaire Blazers owner Paul Allen, after putting Trail Blazers fans and bankruptcy lawyers through their paces for years, is buying back the Rose Garden.
That sound you’re hearing is the sound of one hand clapping. Yes, putting the arena and team back together is more likely to keep the Blazers in town. But Allen’s prior history of mismanaging the team and the arena when he had both doesn’t exactly fill us with joy, either.
Here’s the press release:
Vulcan Inc. and Portland Arena Management Sign Letter of Intent
PORTLAND, Ore., Feb. 2 /PRNewswire/ — Vulcan Inc. and Portland Arena Management LLC (PAM) today announced that they have signed a letter of intent under which an affiliate of Vulcan will acquire PAM, which owns, among other things, the Rose Garden Arena. Additional terms of the agreement were not disclosed. Vulcan is owned by Paul G. Allen, who also owns Trail Blazers Inc.
“With this letter of intent, we’ve taken a positive step forward. Assuming this deal gets finalized, it will be a major milestone which will strengthen the long-term financial health of the Trail Blazers,” said Paul Allen. “First and foremost, we want to thank the City of Portland, David Stern and the NBA for their continued support and diligent effort as we progress towards a solution. We also want to thank our great fans, dedicated employees and loyal corporate sponsors for their patience as we work through these challenges now and in the future.”
Thomas Luther, Chairman of the Board of Portland Arena Management, said that “PAM is pleased to have reached an agreement with Vulcan to ensure that the Trail Blazers will remain in Portland. The team has long been an integral part of the community, and we believe this resolution benefits all interested parties — PAM’s members, the City of Portland, and the team and its fans. I also want to thank David Stern and the NBA for their efforts in assisting the parties in reaching this agreement. We look forward to working with Vulcan, the Trail Blazers and the NBA to promptly conclude this transaction.”
David Stern, Commissioner of the NBA, said “The ultimate winners here are the fans of the Portland Trail Blazers and the City of Portland, and I want to thank both the Trail Blazers and Portland Arena Management for going the extra mile to reach this important agreement.”
Vulcan and PAM said that discussions were ongoing and neither party plans to make any additional public comments until a final agreement is reached.
As a wise man (wise by todays standards) said; truthiness is the best descriptor of that which spews forth from Paul Allen, David Stern and all others supporting this absurd venture. Its a shame that ethics have so escaped our nation.