Pelicans owner demands state arena subsidies so wealthy fans can have crushed velour seating access_time March 23, 2026 March 23, 2026 person Neil deMause It’s been a few years since New Orleans Pelicans owner Gayle Benson last talked about getting upgrades to the team’s arena, in part because she fell behind on making payments to the state on Superdome renovations for the Saints , which she also owns. The arena renovations are back on again now, and they include adding more seats, more VIP clubs, and refurbished luxury suites with “high-end furnishings like island bars, crushed velour furniture, brass light fixtures and wood floors” — all the better to distract you from the fact that you just paid premium prices to watch the Pelicans . How much would all this cost? The New Orleans Times-Picayune, which got ahold of the team’s plans via a public records request, notes: Cost estimates were not included in the report. The state and Pelicans are expected to pay for the project through a public-private partnership similar to the one used to fund the recent $560 million renovation of the Superdome. The Times-Picayune doesn’t bother to go into detail about how the Saints deal works: It was in fact two-thirds state money, one-third Benson money that the owner dragged her feet on paying until she could get the state spending upped from $300 million to $380 million in exchange for a five-year lease extension until 2035 . How much taxpayers would be on the hook for in a Pelicans deal, and how long Benson would be willing to extend her lease for — it currently expires in 2029 — remains unknown: Louisiana Stadium and Exposition District attorney Larry Roedel told the paper that the arena plans are “preliminary at best” and both renovation funding and a new lease are “subjects yet to be negotiated.” The New Orleans arena, for those keeping score at home, turns 27 this year, and just got a state-funded $54 million renovation in 2014. It’s sadly lacking in crushed velour, however, as well as having too many upper-deck seats and not enough lower-deck seats, which the Times-Picayune informs us are “a prime revenue source for the Pelicans.” If the goal here is to have the state of Louisiana spend a pile of money so that the team can increase its profits, might it be simpler and cheaper to skip the whole renovation business and just have the state pay Benson directly? It is a local tradition , after all. Share this post: folder New Orleans Pelicans
Curated by Taleb Kabbara · Source: www.fieldofschemes.com