March 2015 entry on this subject which includes Saffan's comment as an Islanders employee on lease in Bridgeport & city council documents.
In June 2015 I reviewed the entire history with documents back to day one.
(see below) professional hockey league clause was incorrect on my part in this entry.
****************************************************************#NYI #isles @thesoundtigers Former NYI Coliseum, WBA manager, Howard Saffan TV interview on Bridgeport project: https://t.co/xI1068zMj4
— NYI Fan Central (@NYIfancentral) August 11, 2017
Ct Post: Reports Mayor Joe Ganim’s plans to turn the city ballpark into an amphitheater for music acts would represent competition barred in the Tigers contract with City Hall.
The project would be constructed and operated by partners ex-Sound Tigers owner Howard Saffan, a developer from Weston, and mammoth concert promoter Live Nation.
“I therefore urge you to reconsider this course of action,” Ledecky wrote. “For if the city accepts the proposal, the Sound Tigers will be forced to exercise all of their rights under the operating agreement.”
Ledecky, in his letter Wednesday, revealed that the Sound Tigers met with Saffan, Live Nation and representatives from the Ganim administration “to discuss the (amphitheater) proposal and its effect on the continued financial viability of the arena.”
Ledecky claimed the Tigers had been given until the week of Aug. 14 “to address in writing whether and under what circumstances the Sound Tigers could accept the ballpark conversion.”
He called the city's decision to announce a deal with Saffan and Live Nation this week “perplexing."
NYIFC Comments:
In an 8/9 interview by telephone (see twitter) Saffan makes clear somehow this 15 million dollar public-private deal will put some kind of roof on the ballpark, making it an indoor facility which would take events from the arena which is in operation year-round, hence Ledecky's reaction.
Live Nation also works for Dolan's Chase Garden so if their Belmont Ponzi-Scheme arena is built the tenant NY Islanders could be stuck with Live Nation.
Saffan was the teams president, never the owner, he booked the arena, he worked for the Islanders for over a decade, in Bridgeport, and previously the Coliseum.
And Saffan was the one making clear Bridgeport cannot move to the Coliseum in 2013 at Ratner's press conference to the point it got ugly because the contract in Bridgeport requires the Islanders to supply an AHL team or better through 2021.
John Ledecky quoted somewhere?
Based on this one article very odd development given it claims the concert season in an amphitheater would run from May to October which would alter only a few Oct/April Sound Tiger games unless they made a deep playoff run which has happened once or twice before Roy Boe sold the team to Wang around 2003-04.
The baseball stadium's tenant, the 20-year Bluefish announced 2017 will be their final season.
Obviously both sides have issues with the arena but the Sound Tigers have a binding lease to the point.
A few years ago I worked long/hard to go through the documents. Michael Fornabaio, showed me the key document on AHL team or better clause (vs professional hockey league language change Wang wanted & was approved) which for months I was wrong about based on negotiations from 2011 when Wang bought agreement, and where the meeting documents were.
At the time I documented the history back to Roy Boe/day one.
Jon Ledecky/Scott Malkin own/operate the arena as part of the sale of the Islanders, a competing amphitheater being a problem for them is not good news if their plans are beyond 2021.