A judge tossed out a lawsuit that could have seriously disrupted Seattle’s plan for a new NBA-ready arena.
Sacramento officials weren’t putting much stock in the lawsuit and are relying instead on their own proposal to secure the Kings.
Hours after the judge’s decision, Sacramento City Manager John Shirey said he was encouraged by preliminary talks last week on arena financing with a group of wealthy investors who want to keep the Kings in town.
In a potential stumbling block for Sacramento, the investors at first asked if the city could contribute more than the $255 million it pledged to an arena deal last spring, Shirey said. City officials didn’t present a counteroffer but, at a second meeting two days later, explained the details of the arena package approved by the City Council in March.
That second meeting “went well,” Shirey said. “They had a greater appreciation for what had been offered last year.”
— Reported by Dale Kasler, Ryan Lillis and Tony Bizjak of the Sacramento Bee
