The Indiana Pacers and the city of Indianapolis have reached a deal worth $160 million to keep the team in the city for at least another decade, according to Tony Cook of The Indianapolis Star. The deal will be voted on by the city's Capital Improvement Board on Monday morning.
Pacers, Indianapolis strike $160 million deal to keep team in city
The Pacers will remain at Bankers Life Fieldhouse for at least 10 more years, and the money will be used to cover operating costs and facility upgrades.
USA TODAY Sports
The deal calls for the Pacers to play at Bankers Life Fieldhouse for at least another 10 years, with three one-year renewal options tacked on. This coincides with the final debt payments on the arena. The $160 million will help cover operating costs and facility upgrades, and the report broke down just how those costs will be spread out:
The Capital Improvement Board will subsidize fieldhouse operating costs to the tune of $3.7 million a year. That will cover things such as liability insurance, security and utilities. The CIB also will pay the fieldhouse’s manager $7.1 million a year, with that amount rising 3 percent each year.
In addition, the CIB will provide $26.5 million to the Pacers for upgrades to seating, new paint and improvements to locker rooms and concessions. The CIB also will pay for $7 million in improvements directly to replace the floor, upgrade the cooling tower and improve the facility’s steam pressure control system.
Finally, the CIB will pay $8 million over 10 years for the scoreboard and sound system and will take title of the equipment at the end of the deal.
This new deal will likely be more costly for the city than the current agreement with the Pacers, and some critics question whether the price is too high for a team Forbes Magazine values at $475 million. The Capital Improvement Board is already in a rocky financial situation, and there’s a projected budget deficit of $33.1 million this year.
However, supporters for the deal say having the Pacers around has a major positive economic impact on the Downtown area because of all the foot traffic the team brings.
The deal will remain in place even if the Pacers begin to lose money, and there’s also a provision if owner Herb Simon dies and the team’s loans come due. The team would first be required to seek replacement financing, and if that didn’t happen and the team was put up for sale, the city would have the right of first offer.
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