WinterSports2002.com, Tuesday, March 26, 2002

SLOC squares up with Peaks Arena

Associated Press

PROVO — The Salt Lake Organizing Committee has made a final $3 million payment for rental of The Peaks Ice Arena, where 24 Olympic hockey games were played.

SLOC officials also settled their differences with Peaks Manager Max Rabner over payment for upgrades at the arena. Olympic organizers wanted Rabner to pay for some items and Rabner expected money from SLOC.

The sides agreed to "shake hands and walk away," Utah County Commissioner Gary Herbert said Monday.

Rabner asked for a scoreboard to fulfill an item in the venue contract. SLOC executives Gordon Crabtree and Grant Thomas provided $10,000 to pay for a scoreboard.

A payment to Daktronix for the scoreboard was authorized Monday by the Provo City/Utah County Ice Sheet Authority.

"I think SLOC was a lot more flexible than some thought they'd be," Herbert said. "They'd taken such a hard stance on these facility issues in the past, but now the bills are paid and they don't seem to have to fight for every nickel. If the Olympics had lost money it might have been a little tougher."

The city and county own The Peaks, but about $6 million in construction costs came from SLOC rental payments.

© 2002 Deseret News Publishing Company