Looks like the other side has some dirty hands as well...Big shock
Sonics minority owner surprised arena deal not made
**On the flip side, the Sonics' lawyers sharply questioned Tim Ceis, the deputy mayor of Seattle, about whether he tried to undercut Bennett's efforts to build a new arena in Renton.
In his deposition, Ceis acknowledged he "did express our concerns about the status of KeyArena should a new arena be built" and that he hoped the Legislature would consider giving financial assistance to the city to deal with the remaining debt at the arena if Bennett's effort had succeeded.
The attorney asked Ceis if he lobbied against the Renton facility, but Ceis said he merely had informal discussions with several state politicians in order to remind them that Seattle would need help in such a situation.
In a separate deposition, Seattle City Council president Richard Conlin said he had conversations with "nine or more legislators" from the Seattle area expressing concerns over the Renton proposal's effect on KeyArena, including communications with House Speaker Frank Chopp.
Conlin said the Renton proposal would "cause some potential problems and was not the best choice."
Ceis also acknowledged the city knew Initiative 91 might present problems for its $300 million KeyArena renovation proposal and that he told the NBA one of the potential solutions was having the city council repeal the initiative, which was approved by 70 percent in a vote of Seattle residents in a request to only give public money to stadium projects that provided an agreed-upon rate of return.
He said another option might have been to transfer ownership of KeyArena "to the state or another public authority" so it was no longer a city facility. But Ceis insisted the best way to deal with I-91 would be to comply with its restrictions, which he thought was possible once Steve Ballmer's group agreed to fund half the proposal with private money.
As for why the city was pushing to keep the team after voters had openly rejected such a financing plan, Ceis said, "In politics you sometimes must lead even though the public may not yet be aware of all the issues and may not have yet finally determined where they are."
Sonics attorney Brad Taylor also repeatedly asked Ceis if the city has an understanding with the K&L Gates law firm about what communication it can and cannot have with Ballmer's group about city-privileged matters, since the firm represented both groups at various times.
Taylor called the ploy "a shell game" and indicated there "obviously is going to be some major issues as far as K&L Gates as far as the attorney/client privilege."
Ceis indicated in his testimony that Walker, one of the minority partners in Howard Schultz's ownership group, began advising the city in the fall of 2007 after contacting the city and saying "he'd be available to help in our efforts to enforce the lease."
Taylor later pointed out that Walker also was advising the Ballmer group.
The Sonics' attorney also questioned Ceis about not upholding a confidentiality agreement made during a meeting with NBA officials in New York. Ceis acknowledged he told Save Our Sonics founder Brian Robinson of the meeting, but didn't disclose what was discussed.**
Love this part...Sure I didn't disclose what was discussed **wink wink**
Ceis acknowledged he told Save Our Sonics founder Brian Robinson of the meeting, but didn't disclose what was discussed.**