N.B.A. and Partner to Help Build 12 Arenas in China

n an aggressive move to brand the NBA as the ultimate basketball authority in China, the league and AEG will design and build a dozen new arenas over the next few years.

The arenas will be mostly financed by local governmental units. The NBA and AEG will control the facilities, however.

The pair already has a history: they designed and built the arena used for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Bejing. In addition, AEG owns and/or runs over 90 facilities, including Staples Center in Los Angeles, the O2 in London and the O2 World arena in Berlin.

The money for the arena investment will come from NBA China, a side venture that includes investors like the Walt Disney Company.

NBA, AEG to design and build 12 new arenas in China....

Beacon planned for Orlando Events Center

A 188-foot entry beacon is expected to welcome visitors to the new Orlando Events Center scheduled to open in fall 2010

Designs for the beacon were released by HOK Sports Inc., an architecture firm with past arena projects including the Pepsi Center in Denver, the Philips Arena in Atlanta and the Toyota Center in Houston.

Exact costs for the beacon were not released, but the cost for the entire 750,000-square-foot arena is estimated around $450 million.

Beacon planned for Orlando Events Center....

HKS, Mortenson tapped to design and build new Vikings stadium

The Minnesota Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission awarded a $2.5-million contract to the Dallas-based HKS and Minneapolis-headquartered Mortenson Construction to prepare a rough design, construction schedules and cost estimates for lobbying at the Minnesota Legislature during the 2009 session.

HKS, Mortenson tapped to design and build new Vikings stadium....

Jones has cash cow in new stadium, newspaper finds

The Associated Press

FORT WORTH, Texas — Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones could more than make up for his share of the team's new $1.1 billion stadium through personal seat licenses and suite sales, according to a newspaper analysis.

If Jones sells all 55,000 seat licenses at costs ranging from $2,000 to $150,000, he could bring in $735 million without including the price of the ticket, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported in an analysis published Sunday.

Another $400 million is already guaranteed through the 200 suites sold at a minimum price of $100,000 a year, including game tickets, with a 20-year lease.

Jones is paying $750 million of the stadium's cost. The city of Arlington is providing most of the remaining $350 million through voter-approved bonds that will be paid back from portions of sales, hotel occupancy and rental car taxes. The stadium opens next year.

Personal site licenses are becoming a popular way for team owners to finance new stadiums. They are charged to season ticket holders for the rights to the seats and don't include ticket prices. Fans can finance the licenses over up to 30 years and are allowed to sell them on the private market.

Jones has cash cow in new stadium, newspaper finds....