Tempe City Council has voted unanimously to send the Arizona Coyotes’ proposed 16,000-seat arena and entertainment district to a referendum in May 2023, PHNX Sports‘ Chierstin Susel reported Thursday evening.
The Coyotes have presented a $2.1 billion plan to remediate and develop 46 acres of land on the south bank of the Salt River in Tempe, Arizona, just two miles west of Mullett Arena and the Arizona State University campus.
Back in June, Tempe City Council voted 5-2 to approve formal negotiations with the Coyotes on the proposed development, which — save for $200 million in city sales tax revenue generated by the project — would be constructed with private funds.
While a preliminary council vote on the project is expected for Nov. 29, it appears Tempe citizens will have the ultimate say on whether it’ll move forward.
The Coyotes played their first four games at Mullett Arena in recent weeks after starting the 2022-23 season on a six-game road trip.
As the Coyotes wait for construction to finish on their new NHL-standard dressing rooms, they’re currently in the midst of an NHL record-tying 14-game road trip (which they’ve started with three consecutive wins).
In addition to an NHL-sized arena, the Coyotes’ entertainment district would include hotels, residential areas, restaurants and retail stores. It’d be built on the site of a compost yard at the northeast corner of Rio Salado Parkway and Priest Drive in Tempe.
As we’ve covered in depth here at Daily Faceoff, the Coyotes would have a few other possible options at their disposal if the Tempe project is rejected. They could attempt to bunk in with the Phoenix Suns at Footprint Center, which previously hosted the Coyotes until 2003; other alternatives would include renovating the ancient Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum or (owner-willing) relocation.
The Coyotes defeated the New York Islanders by a 2-0 score on Thursday evening.
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