It’s the Arenas Again

There’s an element of deja vu in the contest between Anaheim and Santa Ana to be the first on the block to have its very own indoor sports arena. In the mid-1980s, a proposal for an arena in Santa Ana ran smack into opposition from residents; later a similar proposal fell by the wayside in Anaheim, where the City Council didn’t go for the idea.

Now the two cities are locked in a head-to-head race to build an arena that neither city seemed to want enough before. The difference today is that the climate has changed and so has the price tag. There is no sports franchise in sight. Even if there were, there is no certainty that having professional basketball and hockey teams in Orange County would result in an economic boon to the area. The cost of building a facility today is much higher than it was the last time the debate was held.

When the failed Westdome project was considered, Santa Ana had a $37-million bond sale on the table. Today, the city’s proposal for a privately owned arena has an estimated construction cost of $75 million, with the city subsidizing up to $1 million a year for 10 years. When Anaheim considered an earlier arena, plans called for a $40-million project; today, the estimate for a proposed, publicly owned facility is $94 million, with a plan for public subsidy up to $1.5 million a year. Clearly, one of the few certainties of having such facilities is that anticipated costs climb through the roof.

A few years back, the National Basketball Assn., a likely tenant, was looking to expand. Today, it isn’t. With Wayne Gretzky in Los Angeles, it’s unlikely that a National Hockey League franchise would draw much interest in Orange County. Both cities are going out on a limb because franchises aren’t likely to make a commitment unless there’s a facility.

The Anaheim proposal is compromised further by the delays resulting from lawsuits filed against it. A Santa Ana facility would be operated by Spectacor Management Group, which already operates the Los Angeles Sports Arena and is prohibited by contract from managing a similar facility within 75 miles. Its situation in Los Angeles would have to change, so its interest in Santa Ana looks like a fallback plan if it doesn’t get its way with the Los Angeles Coliseum Commission.

So there are many reasons against running this race. For any serious arena project to fly, it probably should be something the county is involved in, not competing cities within it. All things considered, the competition between Santa Ana and Anaheim for a new indoor sports arena is a race to nowhere.