Sportsnet’s John Shannon reports that the city of Seattle will enter into exclusive negotiations with Oak View Group regarding renovations to KeyArena.
Seattle Mayor Ed Murray is scheduled to make an announcement about the future of the arena on Wednesday morning.
The Los Angeles-based Oak View Group is fronted by a collective that includes former MLSE president and CEO Tim Leiweke, Irving Azoff and James Dolan.
Seattle Partners — a group that combined arena giant AEG and Hudson Pacific Properties — had submitted plans for a possible renovation, but withdrew from the process on Sunday, citing concerns about how the city has conducted review of proposals. Oak View’s proposal was a $564-million plan.
The renovations are a key step required to bring an expansion or relocated NHL or NBA franchise to Seattle.
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