Arizona Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo has spoken with several potential buyers in and out of the state to gauge interest in purchasing an NHL franchise from him. Arizona Sports” John Gambadoro reports.
Meruelo was reportedly seeking more than $1 billion for the franchise, which he purchased in July 2019. Gambadoro added that the Coyotes owner recently spoke with NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman about the team's future.
“Mr. Meruelo and the team are solely focused on land auctions and winning bids. And keeping the Coyotes in Arizona,” the Coyotes said. arizona sports Thursday when asked about any conversations Meruelo may have had with potential buyers.
The Coyotes recently targeted construction of a new arena in northeast Phoenix near Scottsdale Road and Loop 101 after a May 2023 public vote did not give the team the green light to buy and develop Tempe's entertainment district. This is the land where I lived. The NHL franchise owned by Meruelo plans to buy the state-owned land at auction, which, if announced in April, would not see bids until June at the earliest.
The hockey franchise, which has played the past two seasons at Arizona State University's Mallett Arena, was looking for a place to build a new arena after being forced out of its old home in Glendale after the 2021-22 season. ASU and the Coyotes had a deal in place for the team to play there through 2024-25, with an option year next season.
A focus on acquiring land in Phoenix at a yet-to-be-scheduled auction appears to be the next step in finding a permanent home. There were still potential hurdles to cover before the team purchased the land.
According to the Arizona Constitution, auction advertising must be published in print media at least 10 weeks prior to the auction. The state has 240 days to hold the auction after the appellate board approves it on March 14.
That means land auctions won't be held until at least mid-June, but they don't have to be held until November 9th.
According to the state constitution, “If approval of a lease or sale by the Board of Appeals occurs more than 240 days prior to auction, the department shall reassess or update the original valuation of the property being leased, exchanged, or sold. It shall be taken as such.”
The Arizona Department of Lands said the draft auction notice had not been completed as of Thursday. Arizona Sports.
After the Tempe vote was rejected, the team was scrambling to find an alternative to remain in the state.
Coyotes team leaders confirmed in August that Meruelo is interested in purchasing land in Mesa, which is said to be near Alma School Road and Loop 202. At the time, the team said it continued to consider other properties in or near the East Valley.
After that, the focus was on Phoenix, but a sign that time was running out was that NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said during his Feb. 2 All-Star press conference that he was “quite confident” that Meruelo and the Coyotes could work it out in the arena. It appeared when he said, “I have it.” .
“Just last week, Alex Meruelo told me he was confident he could pull this off,” Bettman said. “I'm not in the habit of going against owners unless I have hard facts to the contrary. And I'm expecting that and I'm pretty… pretty confident that he's going to do what he says he's going to do.” Masu.”
In January, the owners of the NBA's Utah Jazz said they had the immediate ability to bring an NHL team to Salt Lake City and requested that the expansion process begin. CEO Ryan Smith said the company is “100% focused on getting this done as quickly as possible.” Associated Press.
Negotiations between Smith and the league have been ongoing since 2022, and the NHL said in a statement that it appreciates the interest.
