The New Tempe Arena is a proposed sports facility to be constructed in

Tempe, Arizona , settlement_type = City , named_for = Vale of Tempe , image_skyline = Tempeskyline3.jpg , imagesize = 260px , image_caption = Tempe skyline as se ...

. If approved by City of Tempe voters on May 16, 2023, it would serve as home arena for the

Arizona Coyotes The Arizona Coyotes are a professional ice hockey team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Coyotes compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference and currently play at the Mull ...

of the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

(NHL). This would be part of the $1.7 billion Tempe Entertainment District. The proposal also includes hotels, retail, apartments, and a theater.

Design

After years of informal negotiations between City of Tempe Economic Development Manager Maria Laughner and Arizona Coyotes management, the Coyotes proposed a 16,000-seat arena that would be located on a parcel of city owned land adjacent to the Salt River. The site contains 1.5 million tons of landfill material, including potentially hazardous waste that would have to be remediated before an arena could be built. Tempe would also have to move its municipal maintenance and storage facility currently on the site.

History

On June 2nd, 2022 the Tempe City Council voted 5 to 2 to begin formal negotiations with the Coyotes, with a final agreement at least several months later. The City of Phoenix implied that litigation over development around the arena is likely if Tempe approves the development the Coyotes proposed. The FAA would have to approve all building heights and locations, as the proposed arena is directly under the centerline of runway 7L/25R. The Coyotes are also seeking city sales tax revenues and a 30 year waiver of property taxes to help pay for $200 million in additional costs, including infrastructure work.

Concerns

Due to the site location,

Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport is a civil–military public airport east of downtown Phoenix, in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States. It is Arizona's largest and busiest airport, and among the largest commercial airports in th ...

officials have expressed concerns that the Tempe Entertainment District will cause a risk for inbound and outbound aircraft. Phoenix is also concerned that residential uses would occur within the 65db contour, violating a 1994 intergovernmental agreement between Tempe and Phoenix. In 2001, a similar roadblock prevented the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...

from building a stadium near Rio Salado Parkway, which resulted in them moving to

Glendale Glendale is the anglicised version of the Gaelic Gleann Dail, which means ''valley of fertile, low-lying arable land''. It may refer to: Places Australia * Glendale, New South Wales ** Stockland Glendale, a shopping centre *Glendale, Queensland, ...

in 2006. In addition to the issues with the airport, the Coyotes only scored 80 out of 200 on financial ability, by far the lowest scored category Tempe staff considered.

References

Proposed indoor arenas in the United States Arizona Coyotes {{Arizona-stub