Arizona governor Katie Hobbs has signed off on legislation committing up to $500MM (plus an annual inflation adjustment) in sales tax revenue over the next 30 years towards Chase Field renovations (link via The Associated Press). The bill had passed the state legislature on Tuesday. Hobbs has been a longtime supporter of the project, so her approval was largely a formality.
The next step is for the organization to agree to a lease extension with Maricopa County. Their current lease at Chase Field runs through 2027. “This could all be for naught if we don’t have a new lease extension, and we’re going to start negotiating that,” D-Backs CEO Derrick Hall told Arizona Sports this week. “I don’t see any issue there.”
The public funding will go towards infrastructure upgrades to the stadium. Hall told Craig Harris of 12 News that improving the air conditioning system and installing a new video board are among the initial priorities. The team has stated that they’ll commit $250MM to the project.
As noted by Arizona Sports’ Alex Weiner, the legislation includes financial penalties if the D-Backs leave Chase Field before 2050. They’d face a $10MM fine for leaving before 2035 with lesser penalties if they leave between 2036-50. In February 2024, when the team was encountering resistance in their pursuit of public funding, owner Ken Kendrick had remarked that they “may run out of time in Phoenix.” They still need to finalize the lease extension but now seem likely to stay for the long haul. Phoenix had lost its NHL team, the Coyotes, in a relocation to Salt Lake City before the 2024-25 NHL season.