Strike 2: This much we know: Stan Kroenke likes to own things. And he likes to build big shiny new buildings, too. And he likes to put winning teams in multiple sports in those buildings. And he likes to do all this in multiple locations.
Stan Kroenke is not just a “Denver” guy as we all know. He owns championship winning teams in Los Angeles and across the pond in England, too.
What we don’t know for sure is why Stan Kroenke is reportedly set to become the “lead investor and limited partner” in the “redevelopment” of an almost 50 acre site in San Diego where plans are to build a big fancy new NBA/NHL ready arena. He will also reportedly end up owning 95% of the development when it’s completed. And a lot of folks in SoCal are certain that Kroenke is bringing at least an NHL franchise to their market to play in his new arena “in the near future.”
San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria told local media, “That someone of his caliber is willing to make this investment…makes it more likely that the project will come to pass.
“You have someone who knows how to do big projects who could take his investment and really go anywhere in the world. And he’s choosing San Diego.”
But why?
Kroenke of course already owns an NBA franchise and an NHL franchise, both of whom have won recent championships and both of whom enjoy rabid fan support in a building that Kroenke owns. Rules obviously prohibit him from owning a second NBA or NHL team, but is it permissible or even acceptable for the owner of the Colorado Avalanche to own a building that another NHL team plays in? If anyone can do it, it’s the guy who already rents his football stadium out to the Los Angeles Chargers.
But doesn’t all this seem rather curious? Uncomfortable even?
Kroenke has no ties to Denver other than his ownership of the Nuggets, Avs, Colorado Rapids, Ball Arena and the Altitude TV and radio network. He didn’t hesitate to move the NFL Rams out of St. Louis – much closer to his home – and to the glistening new confines of So-Fi Stadium, the palace he built in Los Angeles.
This is not to suggest that Kroenke plans to relocate the Nuggets or Avs. That’s farfetched, at the moment. But still, uncomfortable seems to be the right word here. That’s because relocation is never out of the question. The NHL did just relocate the Phoenix Coyotes to Salt Lake City, where they will become the Utah to-be-named-laters.
Could the Avs or the Nuggets ever leave Denver? That’s a hard thing to envision.
The San Diego “Midway Rising” arena project, which includes affordable housing, open space and other stuff, is still a long way from being ready, and with no concrete plans for a current franchise to be placed there, it’s almost impossible to see the new building housing a professional tenant during this decade. So as things stand, this appears to be nothing more than another shrewd real estate investment for Kroenke and his cohorts.
That could change of course. Kroenke’s relationship with the fans and city of Denver could sour five years from now.
For now, uncomfortable remains the right word.
