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The last hurdle for a new downtown arena has been cleared. While it was always extremely unlikely that anything would be able to stop the arena from being built, there was one final obstacle preventing the city from providing the funds necessary for the project: a lawsuit by STOP and their lawyers alleging that the city of Sacramento gave the Sacramento Kings a "secret subsidy" to keep the team in Sacramento.
That lawsuit was thrown out of court today, with Judge Timothy Frawley siding with the city of Sacramento. Dale Kasler and Tony Bizjak, who have been on the arena beat from Day 1, have the news:
Secret subsidy? Judge says additional assets may be of value someday to #NBAKings but "did not have significant value to the city."
— Dale Kasler (@dakasler) July 24, 2015
Judge Frawley ruling in arena lawsuit: plaintiffs failed to meet their burden of proof on any of their charges against arena deal
— Tony Bizjak (@TonyBizjak) July 24, 2015
Judge in arena case: "no merit" in foes' claim that city misrepresented value of city's contribution
— Dale Kasler (@dakasler) July 24, 2015
Judge in arena case rejects idea of "nefarious backroom deal."
— Dale Kasler (@dakasler) July 24, 2015
Judge disputes plaintiffs' claim that DT Plaza garages are worth millions. City "did not fraudulently conceal" value of digital billboards
— Dale Kasler (@dakasler) July 24, 2015
Judge in arena case says plaintiffs' arguments "nothing more than speculation, based largely on taking statements out of context."
— Dale Kasler (@dakasler) July 24, 2015
Judge: Even if city analysis on asset values was flawed, no proof that it knew it was flaws - key threshold in proving fraud.
— Dale Kasler (@dakasler) July 24, 2015
Judge says city is entitled to recover full costs of the lawsuit the anti-arena group filed
— Tony Bizjak (@TonyBizjak) July 24, 2015
With this lawsuit over and done with, the city of Sacramento can now issue the parking revenue bonds to finish financing the arena. As of now, the Kings have paid for all parts of construction. The Kings are also responsible for any cost overruns the project might entail.
Sacramento's new downtown arena, the Golden 1 Center, is scheduled to open in October of 2016. The first parts of the roof trusses went up this past week.