Ken Sawyer
Ken Sawyer
arena build great hard money offering opportunity question state
It would be pretty hard to question 'Why not do this? It's a great opportunity to get a new arena. ... We don't need state money. They can put the state money to other uses. We're offering to build the arena at no cost.
arena backdrop building cost entire hearing knowing money nickel pay public sector small taxpayer
We have done this in the backdrop of knowing and hearing that no one has any money from the public sector for an arena. That is no small challenge. But we have come up with a way to pay for the entire cost of building a new arena with not a nickel of taxpayer money.
campaign inside political relationship smells sure whatsoever
This thing smells wrong. They should be making sure that there's no hint whatsoever of any political inside deal, any relationship with campaign contributions.
assistant former none
You can be an assistant GM, former GM, you could be an agent, you could be none of the above.
bowl community helps hope people short sports super team terms understand
I think the Super Bowl actually helps people understand what a sports team can do for a community in terms of coalescing that community. We hope to be back in your championship in a very short time. So, I think it's helpful.
board craig decided grateful past respect time tremendous
We have tremendous respect for Craig and are very grateful for his many contributions to this organization over the past 17 years. However, I and our board have decided that it is time for a change.
coin encourage equal great local ownership people step
Having local ownership is a great asset, and we would look very favorably on that. All things equal and if it's a coin toss, we encourage local people to step up and be a part of this.
activity against anyone gambling gaming illegal involving league looks operation parlor position
If anyone looks at this at all, they'll see this is about an illegal activity and not a legalized slots parlor. And the NHL's position is very clear. The league is against gambling on hockey. A slots parlor is about a gaming operation involving slots.
My first thought was that we need a new arena.
thoughts
My first thoughts were we need a new arena.
lots others pressure raise returns
With others firms, there's lots of pressure because they need to show returns to raise another fund.
agreed change decision difficult move time
This was a difficult decision we did not take lightly. But we all agreed it was time to make a change and move forward.
board came change decision difficult discussion forward generation involved members move next team time
This was a difficult decision that we did not take lightly. It involved all the members of our board and after much discussion we all came to the same conclusion: it was time to make a change and move forward with the next generation team under new leadership.
absolutely money steadily whether work
We've been making payments steadily whether there was a work stoppage or not or whether we made money or not. That's just the way we do business. There's absolutely a sense of pride.