http://www.nola.com/hornets/t-p/index.ssf?/base/sports-1/1084516506140730.xml Hornets' focus for practice facility shifts Arena area favored over eastern N.O. Friday, May 14, 2004 By Robert Travis Scott and Bruce Eggler Staff writers New Orleans Hornets officials are leaning toward building the basketball team's approximately $10 million practice facility next to the downtown New Orleans Arena instead of in eastern New Orleans or on the West Bank, a team official said Thursday. "We have not made a decision on a final site, but we are looking downtown as the most likely spot," said Jack Capella, Hornets executive vice president and chief operating officer. He said a decision probably will be made within 30 days. Where the Hornets put their highly coveted practice site -- billed as a state-of-the-art facility that, besides holding offices, courts, lockers and weight rooms, might serve as a rallying point for fans -- has been a subject of controversy for two years. A decision to put it somewhere other than in eastern New Orleans is expected to set off a political battle in the city. As part of a package of inducements to lure the National Basketball Association team from Charlotte, N.C., in early 2002, the city promised to contribute $6.5 million toward the cost of a practice facility. But that promise was contingent on the building's being in eastern New Orleans, City Councilwoman Cynthia Willard-Lewis said Thursday. "A commitment was made to build the facility in New Orleans east, and that commitment should be honored," said Willard-Lewis, whose district includes most of eastern New Orleans. "All discussions about the use of public funds have been focused on New Orleans east," Willard-Lewis said, adding that she thinks all her council colleagues support her stance that the only way the Hornets should get the city's money is if the training facility goes in the east. "I am not willing to move from my position," she said. It is not clear where Mayor Ray Nagin's administration stands on the issue, although Nagin has hinted that he thinks a downtown site would make more sense for the city as well as the team. Nagin said in November 2002 that he thinks the facility "will be a huge positive for this area. . . . My message has always been it's basically up to the Hornets to make a decision that's best for them and best for the city." Besides the $6.5 million expected from the city, Capella said, the Hornets would invest "as much as $3 million" in the practice center. No state money is slated for the facility. Not long after the team arrived in 2002, majority owner George Shinn said the facility would go in the east, and at least four sites in eastern New Orleans were under consideration at one time. In the past year, Jefferson Parish arose as a contender. The team has been practicing at the Alario Center near Westwego since moving to the area, but a decision to put the center in Jefferson Parish almost certainly would cost the team the city's subsidy. New Orleans City Councilwoman Jacquelyn Brechtel Clarkson, whose district includes Algiers, has said she would like to have the center in Algiers but would not push for such a site as long as eastern New Orleans remained a viable contender. Capella said the team is awaiting the final design of the facility, which could be built on a parking lot or vacant space next to the arena, where the Hornets have played the past two seasons. Construction would take about nine months, he said. . . . . . . . Robert Travis Scott can be reached at [email protected] or (225) 342-4197. Bruce Eggler can be reached at [email protected] or (504) 826-3320. --

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