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NEW ORLEANS -- The NFL has once again shown its displeasure
with the New Orleans Saints' lack of a long-term deal with
Louisiana. Saints owner Tom Benson wants a renovated Superdome, a lease
that would run through 2020, and annual payments from the state for
the length of the deal, and he would like to sew it up by Jan. 1. Gov. Kathleen Blanco said, however, she would not engage in
talks with the Saints, or even announce the state's position, until
after the NFL regular season ends Jan. 2. The Saints situation "doesn't look like it's any better today
than it was a year ago," NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue told the
Los Angeles Times last week. "If anything, it looks worse." A league spokesman on Tuesday confirmed the commissioner made
the comments to the Times reporter on a trip to Iraq to visit the
troops. He said Tagliabue was unavailable for comment. Saints
officials also refused to comment. The Indianapolis Colts this week reached agreement for a new
stadium, the Chargers and the city of San Diego are negotiating a
deal, leaving the Saints as the top prospect to potentially
relocate to the nation's second-largest market. The NFL has said that it is determined to bring a team to Los
Angeles, although whether it will be an expansion team or a
relocated one has yet to be determined. Benson has repeatedly said he does not want to move the team,
but when he announced the latest proposal, he apparently drew a
hard line about a deal. "I don't want to move and I don't want to sell," Benson said
at the time. "But we have three choices -- build a new stadium,
enhance the Superdome, or tell us to leave." A new stadium is out of the question, state officials have said.
Renovating the Superdome seems to be a suitable alternative for
both the team and the state, but a sticking point is the payments
the Saints are asking for. For the Saints, settling for a renovated Dome is keyed to
receiving an overall package of local revenue and state subsidy
that keeps the franchise at least at the midlevel of profitability
among the league's 32 teams. The Times reported that confidential NFL documents it obtained
showed that in 1999 the Saints were the only NFL team losing money. "In terms of the 'stadium situations' that have either become
more complicated or seem to have moved backward, I think New
Orleans would have to be in that category," Tagliabue said. He said the situation is complicated by the addition of the
Hornets professional basketball team. "There seems to be some negative byproduct of a second major
league franchise in town," Tagliabue said. "The NBA team seems to
have taken some of the focus away from the Saints and what had been
committed to the Saints by former Gov. Mike Foster." Blanco has expressed concern with the current deal that
obligates the state to annual payments to the Saints totaling
$186.5 million between 2001 and 2010. Hotel taxes were supposed to
cover those payments, but New Orleans tourism took a significant
hit after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, leading to a big
financial shortfall. The state had to dip into the general fund
last July to make a full payment to the team.
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