By Paulina Pineda | Arizona Republic
A community group hopes to mobilize Tempe residents against the Arizona Coyotes’ proposal to build an arena and entertainment district on the south bank of the Salt River.
A text message campaign paid for by nonprofit Central Arizonans for a Sustainable Economy (CASE) calls on residents to urge the Tempe City Council to “say NO” to taxpayer money going toward the arena. It directs recipients to a website where they can write a message to the mayor and council.
The Coyotes are proposing a $1.7 billion development with a hockey arena, hotels, apartments and shops at Priest Drive and Rio Salado Parkway that the team says would be financed by billionaire owner Alex Meruelo and private investors. It wants to use a portion of city sales tax revenues generated on the site to help pay for $200 million in additional costs to remediate the land and get it shovel ready.
