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April 25, 2009
The N.J. Nets at the Prudential Center in Newark? Ask the lawyers first
Newark Star-Ledger
By Joan Whitlow
This opinion piece describes the dispute between the Newark Housing Authority and the New Jersey Devils hockey team about monies owed. The NHA claims that the Devils owe them millions in back rent on Newark's Prudential Center and the Devils say that NHA owes $800,000 because the arena wasn't completed in time. The resolution of this dispute could effect where the New Jersey Nets end up playing should the proposed Atlantic Yards project fail to proceed. Doubts about the Nets' move are included in this analysis.
The N.J. Nets at the Prudential Center in Newark? Ask the lawyers first In the meantime, the Nets basketball team (which was going to build a Newark arena for itself before the team's ownership changed) is playing at the Izod, but planning to move to a Brooklyn sports center envisioned as part of a major real estate development. Those of us who have been sticking pins in effigies of the blueprints believe the current economy has killed the Brooklyn move. Our hope is Bruce Ratner, the Nets principal owner, will either move the team from the old, can't-draw-a-crowd Izod center to Newark, or sell the team to those who want them to play at The Rock.
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However, even if Brooklyn is a bust, getting the Nets to Newark, or keeping them in New Jersey for that matter, is not a slam dunk. It will depend on the deal that the Nets make. As the history of the Prudential arena shows, public officials are often all too willing to give up more than they should to woo a major league franchise. The competition for the Nets will be fierce and could get irresponsibly stupid on a national level.
Posted by steve at April 25, 2009 6:42 AM