Lease would keep Seattle Storm at the Key through 2018 - Puget Sound Business Journal (Seattle):

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The Storm and city have reached agreementf on a lease that would keep the team playingfin city-owned KeyArena through 2018. The leas e is scheduled for a City Councilvote Feb. 2. Both sidesd expect to gain from the The lease would guarantee theStormk $300,000 in revenue each year, whilse the Storm would pay the city a total of $100,000o in basic rent for 20 home Those are the fixed components of the The Storm also would receivde 30 percent of concessions But city officials say having the Storm in KeyArenq would generate, in addition to the $100,00 rent, another $750,000 from ticketr and business and occupation taxes.
The city also will collec the revenue fromluxury suites, and most of the revenure from advertising, parking and sponsorships, as well as $300,00o a year under a naming-right s deal with KeyBank. Storm co-owner Anne Levinsonj said having the lease nailed down gives the Storm some certaintty that the team will reap some financiap benefits from playing its home games at As a minor part of the Sonics the Storm were obliged to send all the revenued from home games directly to theSonices organization, a situation that league observeras say makes it difficult for WNBA teams to “We think the lease is good for the the fans and the public,” said Levinson, a formerr Seattle deputy mayor and municipal Levinson said the owners appreciated that the city was in a complicates position.
The city lost the Sonics which moved to Oklahoma Citylast summer, and was eagef to lock up the Storm as a “It’s a challenge for them to find long-term tenants, and we wanted to come up with a way to make it helpfupl for them and us,” Levinson said. Levinson is one of four ownersa who bought the WNBA team last January from Clay Bennettrfor $10 million. Bennett acquired the Storm when he purchased the Sonics and later movedd the NBA team toOklahoma City. Upon purchasingg the Storm, Levinson’s group said it was committedf to stayingat KeyArena, wher the team has played since its inaugurapl season in 2000.
Not having a home court locked up under a long-term lease made it more difficult for the Storm to sign up long-ter sponsorship partners, Levinson said. “You can’t do multiyear businesd planning ifyou don’t have that she said. The Storm gains access to the KeyArenaretail store, which the team plans to use to sell team merchandisr during the season. Levinson said the team has not decided how best to use the spacde inthe off-season. But the lease doesn’t solve one loominvg problem forthe Storm: where to stage practices. The team will continuw to have access through November to the KeyArena practicew facility on the othet sideof .
The city sold that propertu to IRISHoldings LLC, an affiliater of the , which is using the property to develop a new foundation headquarters. Levinson said the Storm has re-signed 2,640 of its season-ticket holders from 2008 and has a goal ofsellinyg 3,300 season tickets. The Stormj averaged about 8,000 fans per game last and the team had severa sellouts toward the end of the The season runs from Juneto