Muckleshoot Tribe offers to donate 26 acres for new arena

AUBURN — The Muckleshoot Indian Tribe said Monday it is willing to donate land next to the Emerald Downs horse racing track in Auburn to build an arena for the Sonics and Storm.

But an 18,500-seat arena would cost more than $450 million to build, and there is no plan yet about how to pay for it, the tribe's consultants said Monday.

The Muckleshoots released a study from the arena-planning firm Brailsford & Dunlavey that said the Auburn site — about 25 miles south of Seattle — is close enough to the Sonics' fan base to work.

The tribe's next step, if there is significant interest in an Auburn arena, will be to figure out whether anyone wants to pay for it.

"This is a feasible site," said Jason Thompson, the consultant who conducted the study for the tribe. "That does not necessarily mean it is financially feasible."

It is likely a taxpayer contribution would be required for construction, said Rollin Fatland, a spokesman for the tribe. The study estimates the total cost of the arena would be $452 million, assuming construction started in 2009. Sonics owners this year failed to win legislative approval for taxes to help build a $500 million Renton arena.

The tribe sent its feasibility study to Sonics owner Clay Bennett and state political leaders Friday to gauge interest in trying to come up with a financing plan.

But such support was not immediately forthcoming.

Aides to Gov. Christine Gregoire were noncommittal, saying the governor will read the study.

"It's an unsolicited proposal," said Scott Merriman, legislative director for the state Office of Financial Management. "I think it is just part of the puzzle. We're all starting to see an increased level of interest in doing something."

Gregoire has tapped a trio of local business leaders — Microsoft Senior Vice President and General Counsel Brad Smith; Boeing executive Bob Watt, and developer Dave Sabey — to discuss arena possibilities. Fatland said it makes sense for that group to examine the Muckleshoots' arena idea.

Although Bennett was scheduled to be in Seattle on Monday, a spokesman said he'd have no comment. Bennett toured Emerald Downs earlier this month. Contending KeyArena is too small, Bennett has said he'll seek NBA approval to relocate the Sonics and Storm if he doesn't get an arena deal by Oct. 31.

Chris Van Dyk, the anti-stadium-subsidy activist, said the only difference between the Muckleshoot proposal and the Renton plan is "the distance south from Seattle," predicting the arena would require hundreds of millions in taxpayer money "unless the billionaire Sonics owners from Oklahoma decide to pay for it themselves."

One prominent Sonics supporter, Sen. Margarita Prentice, D-Renton, said she doubts the NBA wants an arena so close to the horse-racing track or nearby tribal casinos.

An association with gambling is "a major issue. That's a hurdle that I don't know how it can be surmounted," Prentice said.

Fatland pointed out the tribe's casino is not adjacent to the proposed arena site and said it is unlikely the Muckleshoots would own the Sonics arena.

A farmhouse and pasture currently occupy the 26-acre site across from Emerald Downs, immediately east of State Route 167.

The land was purchased by the tribe in 2005 for $3.2 million, according to King County property records. It contains wetlands and a creek, but could be developed with appropriate environmental mitigation, Fatland said.

The Brailsford & Dunlavey study compared the potential Auburn arena site with Seattle's KeyArena and found Auburn was within reasonable driving range for a slightly larger population.

South and East King County is becoming especially attractive for the NBA's target demographic — 20- to 34-year-olds, the study said.

An arena at the site would be 777,000 square feet — about twice the size of Seattle's KeyArena.

The Muckleshoots' consultants interviewed Seattle-area business leaders and found there was support for an Auburn arena if it was the only way to keep the Sonics and Storm in the region.

But the business leaders surveyed said they would rather see an arena in Seattle, Bellevue or Renton.

"There is no way to sugarcoat this," Thompson said. "Auburn was not the preferred site."

Jim Brunner: 206-515-5628 or jbrunner@seattletimes.com