San Diego’s negotiations with the Midway Rising development team selected to remake the city’s sports arena real estate in the Midway District are "said to be progressing," but final consideration of a development deal will "likely get pushed to early 2025," according to Jennifer Grove of the SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE. Monday, San Diego City Council members received an "information-only update" on the project from City of San Diego Dir Economic Development Christina Bibler where she "flagged a delay" in hiring a consultant to evaluate the prospects of forming a tax increment financing district to help finance public facilities. She told council members, "We’re still hopeful we can accomplish a lot by the end of this calendar year, but (we’re) looking to maybe adjust (the timeline) into 2025 -- maybe the early part of 2025 for any final votes." The Kroenke Group, a subsidiary of Rams owner Stan Kroenke’s real estate firm, is Midway Rising’s "lead investor and limited partner." The city and development team have been "negotiating a long-term ground lease," per the framework defined in an exclusive negotiation agreement (or ENA), for "more than 18 months." The ENA’s initial two-year negotiation period is set to expire on Dec. 4, 2024, although the mayor has the "ability to extend the agreement for two, one-year terms." The Midway Rising project calls for 4,250 total residential units, a 16,000-seat replacement arena, 130,000 square feet of commercial space, and an unspecified number of acres of parks, plazas and public space (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 6/25).
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