 |
|
|||||||||||||
Vol. 18, No. 23, DECEMBER 5, 2005: |
||||||||||||||
Lease Crisis Looms for Sonics | Giving Tree Update | Friday Potpourri | RFH Holiday Pitch | Slate of Officers, Directors Approved for 2006-2007 | Thanksgiving Baskets Project A Win | Mitch Freedman Newest BBRC Member | Busy Weeks Ahead | Student of the Month: Danielle Luciu | Ballard Easy With Holiday Spirit | Infirmary Update | Web Fun
“Our lease expires in 2010 for Key Arena and we’ll be losing our practice facility at the same time. Because we’re still in negotiation with the City of Seattle, we can’t make any long-term plans with just 4 years to go on the lease,” Walker explained. Key Arena is composed of 360,000 sq ft. “The average NBA facility is 700,000 sq ft. One of the biggest problems in the Key is the difficulty to affect changeovers. There is only one loading bay accessing the building. A recent concert had 40 trucks filled with gear and it took forever to unload with the current situation,” Walker said. Giving Tree Update During Phil’s report this last Friday, he noted he had a request from a Dad who would like Sonics tickets. Interesting that our speaker that morning was Wally Walker, Sonics Prexy and CEO. You may have seen the negotiating session between Wally and Phil after the meeting. My, oh, my, Wally is certainly someone to look up to! Phil will keep us posted on progress. In the meantime, you should know that one of our erstwhile members has volunteered two tickets, so once again, the Giving Tree will be making someone happy.
Slate of Officers, Directors Approved for 2006-2007
There were no votes to the contrary to the question: “Shall the slate of officers and directors presented to the membership be approved?” The new lineup was approved unanimously. Mitch Freedman Newest BBRC Member Mitch enjoys golf and bowling and wants to “give back to community” with his service in Rotary. President Lingenbrink took over the ceremony, handing out Mitch’s Rotary Pin and telling the new member that he was “joining a group of 1.2 million people around the world who serve above self.” Steve told Mitch to “judge yourself by the 4-way test, and expect to learn a lot at the club, district and international level. For the first six months, a new member is asked to attain 100% attendance and attend New Member monthly meetings. Explore different avenues of service and find your niche. You’re joining a robust Rotary club!” Mitch received a Standing Ovation for becoming the BBRC’s newest member. Student of the Month: Danielle Luciu Danielle also has a passion for teaching. She is enrolled in the Newport High School Teaching Academy, where she gets hands-on experience learning to teach as an intern. Her plans include enrolling at Seattle University next fall to pursue her teaching degree. Congratulations to Danielle Luciu for her new honor.
Infirmary Update Dear Friends and Family,
“Our lease expires in 2010 for Key Arena and we’ll be losing our practice facility at the same time. Because we’re still in negotiation with the City of Seattle, we can’t make any long-term plans with just 4 years to go on the lease,” Walker explained. Key Arena is composed of 360,000 sq ft. “The average NBA facility is 700,000 sq ft. One of the biggest problems in the Key is the difficulty to affect changeovers. There is only one loading bay accessing the building. A recent concert had 40 trucks filled with gear and it took forever to unload with the current situation,” Walker said. The Sonics also claim the least attractive lease in the NBA. “When the new ownership group took over in 2001, it included 50 different partners. Our current lease has revenue sharing with the city and it’s a challenge we’re willing to take.” With a $110 million renovation in 1995, Key Arena became home to the Sonics. The project was backed by bonds sold by the City of Seattle and receipts from arena events.
The Sonic’s boss said it’s a matter of “political will, wherein the City can offer a new lease effective in 2010. With $26 million going to the present lease annually for both the Sonics and the WNBA Storm, the impact on the two franchises is significant. We need a new lease and we hope the City will support the Sonics as they go to Olympia to explore financial support from the state. Some form of tax proposal, extension of existing taxes under the same conditions as Safeco and Qwest Fields would make our facility lease competitive with the rest of the league.” Questions from the audience completed the balance of Walker’s time.
Thanks to Jim Gordon for his introduction. President Lingenbrink presented Wally Walker with a certificate noting that the BBRC had donated a book in his name to the King County Library “Ready-to-Read” program, in conjunction with Rotary International’s focus on Literacy programs. |
Howard Johnson reminded members of the monthly Rotary First Harvest Work Party, set for Saturday, December 10, 9;00 to noon, at Pier 91 in Seattle. Kent Rotarian Roger Morris, who was in the room Friday, was introduced as the coordinator for RFH work parties. Howard also gave the membership a good idea for the Holiday season. Rotary First Harvest offers a brochure which is a request for holiday greeting cards. Your firm or your family can have these cards customized for a donation to RFH. And, the cards express the goodwill that surrounds the RFH program that works year ëround to help feed the hungry in Washington. Ask Howard for details.
The Community Service Committee sponsored another successful Thanksgiving Basket Project. According to Director Shelley Noble, the BBRC was responsible for providing baskets for 50 needy families! “This was a huge success. Our members provided funds enough for 50 turkeys and food for 50 families. Steve Roberts was our turkey buyer, and not only did he do a good job, but he had fun gobbling up all those birds! Thanks for the club’s support for this project!”
Two days later, the entire BBRC gets together for its great Holiday Breakfast, where lots of kids join us for a wonderful Glendale breakfast. It’s the final meeting of the current calendar year and comes before our traditional holidays celebrating Christmas and New Years. The holiday breakfast is December 16th and a head count is necessary for planning purposes. Please let 
Seattle Supersonics President and CEO Wally Walker carried an important message to the BBRC Friday which portends problems for the NBA franchise. The late-arriving Walker mentioned that he’d lived in the Seattle market for 20 years and rolled the wrong dice to get across Lake Washington. Hwy 520 promptly clogged up with a stalled car and we all know the rest of the story.
This is the big day coming up Friday, when ornaments on the Giving Tree are turned into presents. Phil Salvatori puts a cap on this wonderful Christmas project, with over 100 presents being acquired for needy folks in our community. So, December 9th is the deadline for bringing your gifts to a club meeting. Otherwise, you’ll need to personally take your gifts to Phil’s place of business.
Friday Potpourri
Mitch Freedman, a Bellevue CPA — accompanied by his son Jared — became the newest member of the BBRC in induction ceremonies performed Friday. With his sponsor Jim Owens giving a thumbnail sketch on Mitch, we learned he has practiced accounting for over 20 years and currently is self-employed in his own firm. His classification is “CPA-Business.”
Bob Holert introduced Sammamish High School senior Danielle Luciu as the Student of the Month for November. Danielle has a great passion for helping other people. She has helped Florida inner city kids and spent two weeks in Africa working with orphans and AIDS victims. For several years, Danielle has been involved in a project to help distribute Christmas care packages, rising at 4:00 in the morning. 
Ballard Easy With Holiday Spirit
Walker said the Sonic’s payroll is below average, about 10%. Because of this, the club is not competitive with payroll. “We need to improve our financial situation to allow us a more competitive spot with the other 29 NBA teams. As for Key Arena, we love the intimacy the Key offers our fans ... it’s a wonderful place for basketball.”
Walker closed his remarks by saying the Sonic players have given $200,000 to pay for tickets to kids who can’t afford it. Several of the team’s individual players have programs supporting various charities that focus on tickets for needy kids.