Trail Blazers Refuse to Communicate! City Council President Questions Team's Delay Tactics: Aiming to Relocate from Portland

On July 28, Beijing time, a Portland city councilor stated that the Portland government's olive branch of reconciliation has been rejected by the Trail Blazers, and the two sides remain far apart in arena lease negotiations. Portland City Council President Jamie Dunphy suspects the Trail Blazers are stalling for time, with the ultimate goal of moving the team out of Portland.

"We have just communicated with the municipal management staff and are looking for the best way forward, discussing how to attend Thursday's meeting," said Trail Blazers President Hankins.

Dunphy sent a letter to Hankins last Friday, inviting him to a working meeting on Thursday, with all 12 councilors present to hear the team's concerns about the government's draft lease framework.

Dunphy wrote in the letter: "I understand from media reports that the Trail Blazers want to modify the draft agreement the city council presented to you last week. If you and the team's management attend this meeting, it will greatly help me and the councilors understand your requests."

Dunphy stated that the Trail Blazers have informed the council that they will not send representatives to the meeting, scheduled from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM Pacific Time.

Dunphy said: "The Trail Blazers management verbally told us they would not attend and will not provide a written response to my invitation. In addition, the relevant documents we requested earlier have not been received. Without these materials and the team's absence, this meeting is almost meaningless, and I am very disappointed."

The city council is scheduled to vote on August 12 on the 20-year lease framework agreement for the Moda Center. The team's new owner, Tom Dunden, previously stated that if he can get nearly $575 million in public funding support, he is willing to sign a lease contract with the city government.

The Oregon State Legislature passed a bill in March, committing $365 million in funding, on the condition that the city of Portland and the county government provide an additional $208 million for the renovation of the 31-year-old arena.

Of the $208 million in matching funds, $120 million requires approval from the city council. The council asks the Trail Blazers to explain the specific use of the funds. But the Trail Blazers refuse to disclose details, saying that in March the parties had reached a preliminary consensus and hope the government will fund an architect to develop a detailed renovation plan.

The Portland City Council invites the Trail Blazers management to attend a meeting on Thursday afternoon to discuss a new 20-year lease for the Moda Center.

The city government started negotiations in March, initially planning to include a beverage tax, price cap rules (to prevent venue merchants from overcharging), and rent terms in the framework agreement. However, the draft that the council ultimately submitted to the Trail Blazers removed these three items. But the agreement added two new items: an annual payment of $3 million, and a labor harmony agreement requiring hiring union workers as much as possible, from arena construction to food and beverage operations.

A Trail Blazers insider, who spoke on condition of anonymity to freely discuss negotiation details, said the draft framework is "completely unacceptable." AndDunphy said that the council still does not know what exactly the team is dissatisfied with in the draft, because the Trail Blazers refuse to communicate, let alone attend face-to-face meetings.

Dunphy said: "We have not received any substantive information. We don't know what they want, what they oppose, or what conditions are needed for a team to establish a good cooperative relationship with the city, county, and state. We only learned from the news that they are dissatisfied with the draft, but we have not received any formal feedback."

"There are two possibilities: either the team is unwilling to be transparent and subject to oversight in the use of public funds—this is non-negotiable; or they are just going through the motions to stall for time, draining the remaining goodwill of Portland residents, waiting for the government to make a mistake, and using that as a reason to move the team out of the city." Dunphy said, "I have a rough guess in mind, but no solid evidence. I'm used to first considering things from a benevolent perspective and don't want to assume malice. But this situation doesn't seem like mere incompetence; it feels more deliberate."

Hankins, on the other hand, said the team wants to reach a final agreement and does not agree with using media for long-distance negotiations.

"To be honest, I hope all parties can stop public debates and stop using the media to communicate. This approach is not helpful and makes negotiations extremely inefficient. I am determined to reach an agreement, and public bickering is definitely not the way to achieve cooperation," said Hankins.