Portland Trail Blazers call city council's proposed Moda Center term sheet a 'non-starter' - KATU

The distance between the City of Portland and the Trail Blazers on a future deal to fund the city’s portion of a Moda Center renovation is “pretty significant,” according to City Council President Jamie Dunphy. The Portland Trail Blazers made their case directly to Portland City Council Thursday, calling the city's proposed Moda Center term sheet a "non-starter" and laying out, for the first time in a public meeting, the team's biggest concerns with a long-term arena renovation deal. The nearly hour-long presentation marked the first public appearance by Trail Blazers leadership before the council since negotiations over a new lease and public funding package intensified earlier this month. "In the past few weeks, this process has become increasingly adversarial. Every day we see contradictory statements from public officials, and I too feel your frustration, but there's time to reset this conversation. We need clarity about who is negotiating for you, and all the other public entities that are involved. The March framework was successful because it brought all the parties together. We need that alignment again. But this process cannot move forward if we're all faced with threats, public negotiations, and one-sided uninformed proposals," the team's President of Business Operations, Dewayne Hankins, told councilors in opening remarks. At the center of the disagreement is the city's draft term sheet, which outlines the framework for a public investment in renovating the city-owned arena. Hankins said the document contains more than 20 material departures from the framework approved by the Oregon Legislature earlier this year, though the team declined repeated requests from councilors to publicly identify those issues. Despite calling the current proposal a "non-starter," Hankins emphasized the organization remains engaged in negotiations. "We've been at the table this whole time. We've not left the table. We've been very engaged," said Hankins. READ MORE | Town hall spotlights split views on using public funds to renovate Moda Center The team's primary concern centers on language in the current bridge lease agreement requiring Rip City Management to maintain Moda Center in a "first-class" condition. Hankins argued the city should formally acknowledge that the arena already meets that standard and remove what he described as the threat of future litigation hanging over negotiations. "Doing so removes the threat of litigation hanging over these negotiations so that our conversations can move forward," said Hankins. The team said concerns over potential litigation have prevented it from sharing some financial and operational information requested by city officials, arguing that information disclosed during negotiations could later be used against the organization in a legal dispute. Mayor Keith Wilson rejected the suggestion that the city is preparing to sue the organization. "The mayor, the city administrator, the city attorney has never contemplated suing the Blazers," Wilson said during the work session. "We are not contemplating suing the Blazers, Rip City Management or any other parties." City leaders also made clear they have no intention of amending the bridge agreement to remove that language before moving forward with negotiations on a long-term lease. CONTINUING COVERAGE | Moda Renovations Council members spent much of the meeting pressing the team for more detailed information about the proposed $600 million renovation, including project scope, financing and the team's long-term financial commitments. Hankins acknowledged that the organization has not hired an architect to develop final renovation plans, explaining that the team has identified roughly $600 million in needed improvements but will not proceed to final design until funding is secured. Several councilors also questioned why the team has not publicly detailed the roughly 20 concerns it says it has with the draft term sheet. Team attorney Zandria Conyers declined to discuss those issues individually, saying she had advised against negotiating the details in a public forum while the dispute over the bridge agreement remains unresolved. "There were just elements in there that increased the financial obligations of the team and increased financial impact to the team," Conyers said. Deputy City Administrator Donnie Oliveira said that while the Trail Blazers have not publicly identified their approximately 20 concerns with the draft term sheet, the team's objections are "largely financial." The draft term sheet includes provisions requiring labor agreements on the publicly funded work, annual payments from the team, and other conditions tied to the city's investment. Despite the sharp disagreements, Dunphy said he came away encouraged by the discussion. "I'm actually more optimistic after today's discussion because now we know where we're starting from," said Dunphy. He acknowledged the team raised concerns that extend beyond the current draft term sheet but said that is part of the negotiating process. At the same time, Dunphy drew a firm distinction between negotiating a future lease and revisiting past agreements. He said the city is focused on negotiating the future, not relitigating previous lease agreements, including the existing bridge agreement that has become the central point of contention. While Dunphy described the gap between the city and the team as "pretty significant," he said he remains confident an agreement can ultimately be reached. "Because it has to happen," said Dunphy when KATU asked him why he is confident while both sides remain far apart. "We need to get this done, and the people who are going to get it done are the people at the table now. So I have every confidence that those professionals will get it done. I'm a perpetual optimist, I guess." The council is scheduled to hold public testimony on the proposed term sheet on August 5 and 6 before a final vote on the term sheet on August 12. Dunphy said he expects the council to approve a term sheet on August 12, calling that action the beginning, not the end, of negotiations toward a final long-term lease.