Moody pleased with Gila River Arena’s deal

The city of Glendale received praise from Moody’s Investors Services following the city’s re-negotiated arena lease agreement with the Arizona Coyotes.

The Phoenix Business Journal reported that Moody’s likes the new two-year agreement with the Coyotes to lease the city owned Gila River Arena.

Moody’s, which is one of the credit and bond rating agencies that grade Glendale and other municipalities, gave the city an A3 positive outlook rating and likes the fact the deal reduces the city’s cost and resolves a $200 million lawsuit brought against the city by the Coyotes.

The deal, which was approved by the Glendale City Council last month, shortens the term of the agreement from ending in 2028 to ending in 2017. It also reduces the annual fee from $15 million to $6.5 million – an approximant savings to the city of $3.6 million.

As part of the deal, the Coyotes will collect around $5 million annually from ticket surcharges and parking fees from arena events. That money was was previous paid to the city.

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