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Wednesday, July 30, 1997

Chairman dismayed over poll, backs away from arena election

By KELLEY SHANNON / AP Sports Writer

SAN ANTONIO (AP) - A poll commissioned by the San Antonio Spurs shows 61 percent of Bexar County voters surveyed have "hardened attitudes" against using taxpayer money for a new arena, team chairman Peter Holt said Tuesday.

"Believe me, these figures have me worried, have our ownership group worried," said Holt, though he stopped short of threatening to sell the team or move it to another city.

For now, Spurs executives won't push for a local referendum on whether to build a new basketball facility and will leave the matter up to local political and civic leaders, Holt said.

Holt previously had said Jan. 17 was the earliest possible date for a referendum on a new coliseum.

"We need others to speak up," he said.

Spurs executives repeatedly have insisted the team needs a smaller arena more suitable for basketball with lucrative luxury suites if the franchise is to remain competitive in the high-salaried world of the NBA.

Holt envisions a coliseum that also would also be used for other sports, like hockey and rodeo, as well as concerts and other events.

A bill passed in the recent legislative session, and supported by the Spurs, allows local voters to finance arenas by raising sales taxes or imposing other taxes, such as fees on rental cars or admissions to the venue.

Since the 1993-94 season the Spurs have played in the Alamodome, a huge building that also hosts football and major conventions. Before that, the Spurs played in the smaller HemisFair Arena. It since has been torn down to make way for convention center expansion downtown.

Though 66 percent of those surveyed have a favorable opinion of the Spurs and 70 percent believe it is important to keep the team in San Antonio, respondents overwhelmingly opposed taxpayer-financed arena construction.

It didn't matter whether poll respondents were asked about the arena money coming from a sales tax or some other type of public funds, such as car rental or admission taxes. Most respondents remained opposed.

That finding was particularly troubling, Holt said.

"No matter what tax you asked, and we asked it in all different variations, we asked each separately, together, with owners' money, without owners' monies: No, No, No, No, No," Holt said.

Bennett, Petts & Blumenthal of Washington, D.C. surveyed 773 registered voters in Bexar County who were likely to vote in a January 1998 special referendum election. The surveyed was conducted by telephone from July 8-15 and had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percent.

Although the Spurs' ownership group wants to see the team remain in San Antonio, Holt said, he acknowledged the team likely is an appealing one to other cities that covet a pro sports franchise.

"If you ask me personally, I believe the easiest thing for this ownership group to do is sell," he said. "I'm not trying to be cynical or anything else, but my guess is that there is out there." Send a Letter to the Editor about This Story | Start or Join A Discussion about This Story
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