Angels Plan to Train in Tempe Through 2007

The Angels plan to honor the three years left in their agreement to hold spring training in Tempe, Ariz..

“They told me they’re going to be here through 2007,” City Manager Will Manley said Thursday.

Angel spokesman Tim Mead confirmed the decision.

Owner Arte Moreno has yet to decide whether to move the Angels’ spring home to a proposed new $40-million complex in the Phoenix suburb of Goodyear or remain in a renovated facility in Tempe.

Although Tempe wants to retain the Angels -- the team set an attendance record last spring -- Manley said the state money reserved for major improvements would not be available unless the team signed a 20-year lease extension.

After intensive negotiations with Goodyear officials last fall, the Angels believed they could move into a new complex there as soon as 2005. But talks stalled over the division of revenue and expenses, and Goodyear Mayor Jim Cavanaugh now says a grand opening before 2007 “borders on virtual impossibility.”