Exclusive: Diamondbacks say ongoing Chase Field lease talks are "non-productive"
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Chase Field in 2025. Photo: Norm Hall/Getty Images
Lease extension talks between the Diamondbacks and the public entity that owns Chase Field have been "non-productive to date" and are holding up millions in necessary repairs, team president and CEO Derrick Hall tells Axios.
Why it matters: A new state law set aside $500 million in tax dollars to fund fixes to the nearly 30-year-old stadium, but those repairs are on hold until the team agrees to a new lease with the Maricopa County Stadium District.
- "We are missing critical time," Hall says.
Catch up quick: Last year, Gov. Katie Hobbs signed a bill capturing a variety of tax revenue — including income tax and city and county sales tax collected at the stadium — to fund stadium improvements and keep the team in Arizona.
- The bill reconstituted the board of the Maricopa County Stadium District, formed in 1991 to build the stadium, which opened in 1998. Once controlled by the county, the new board now features members appointed by the governor, legislative leaders and the city of Phoenix and county.
What they're saying: Board executive director Mark Winkleman tells Axios that the lease negotiation is "in its early stages" and that "drafts of agreements have been exchanged."
- But Hall says that the lease negotiations have "by far been the steepest hurdle. We have been at it for 14 months."
Context: The team technically hasn't had a lease since 2018, operating instead under a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the county that expires after the 2027 season.
- That MOU, which resolved a court battle over stadium fixes, allowed the Diamondbacks to book non-baseball events in the stadium and set aside the revenue for repairs.
- That didn't calm the testy relationship, though — county records showed the team wasn't setting aside all the money it was supposed to.
Zoom in: "It's a very complicated lease," says board member Mitzi Epstein, who was appointed after voting against the stadium bill as a state senator.
- Epstein tells Axios that the lease has to reflect the new state legal requirement that the team follow procurement regulations when hiring contractors.
- She also wants spending transparency measures, including about the $250 million of its own money that the team pledged when pushing for the bill.
Hall says: "We need language that is not draconian in nature and reflects the spirit of that legislation without renegotiating it."
By the numbers: A Diamondbacks-commissioned assessment performed by commercial real estate company JLL estimated that the stadium needs $600 million in repairs, including $80 million in immediate fixes.
- That includes $40 million to fix concrete, $35 million for the roof and nearly $300 million in mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems upgrades.
- The team has already spent $20 million in recent repairs, including upgrading its scoreboard.
- Future repairs will cost more than the district currently has and will require borrowing money. Who takes out those loans is another item under negotiation.
Threat level: The stadium bill imposes relatively meager penalties if the Diamondbacks leave Chase Field before 2050.
- Yes, but: Epstein says the Diamondbacks have been good partners and "I don't hear them threatening to leave at all."
- In a text to Axios, Hall affirmed the team's commitment to Chase Field.
The bottom line: At this point, "we are beyond deadlines" that the team and board "were staring down months ago," Hall says, making repairs this winter unlikely.
Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect a full quote by Hall, who says the talks have been "non-productive to date" (not "non-productive").