The Pacers Play Hardball
Several years ago, during the height of Reggie Miller fever the Indiana Pacers built a gorgeous new fieldhouse and demolished stodgy old Market Square Arena. The deal negotiated at that time was that the Pacers business office would be responsible for the operating expenses of Conseco Field-house for 20 years.
Ten years later, the front office seems to think that they can’t swing the $15 million a year that is needed to keep the facility running and according to reports on Indystar.com they are now in heavy negotiations with the Capital Improvements Board of the city of Indianapolis to see what can be done about this situation.
What can be done?
Well, the City of Indianapolis can pick up the tab. Period.
The costs involved in LOSING the Pacers are multi-layered and difficult to put exact numbers on, as many of the side effects are not easily trackable – but the CIB estimates minimal losses to the city of $18 million in direct spending and $31.5 million in indirect spending.
Ahem.
Dear City of Indianapolis Capital Improvements Board.
Pay it.
Can you really afford another 1000 people out of work in the city, based on estimates from the CIB study? Can you afford the loss of revenue at the bars and restaurants that ring The Circle and the areas around the field house, much less the suburban sports bars and the grocery stores which see a pick up on game day on purchases of beer and snack food?
Plus, the SIN of the state of Indiana not having a basketball team? That’d be like Green Bay not having a football team. Hoosiers love their basketball. We breathe it and anyone NOT conversant in basketball clearly wasn’t BORN there.
The city can’t afford to lose the Pacers. Period. So what is going on?
Oh, the same thing that has been going on since the team left the ABA and joined the NBA – it’s all negotiations. And it says a lot that a team is hardballing the city after pulling a 32-50 season. I’m serious. In other places, they’d help you pack. I can’t imagine trying to hardball a city when you’ve retreated to the position of “Man, Remember When They Were Good?” status.
But in Indiana, we love our basketball even when they are a bunch of losers. So I suspect the city will pay. After all, do they have a choice?
Not really.








