(CelebrityAccess MediaWire) — The owner of a Biloxi, Mississippi-based arenafootball2 team has announced that he could have a new arena built in time for the start of the 2007 season if he could move the team to Jackson.
Greg Disotell, a south Mississippi real estate developer and owner of the af2’s Mississippi Headhunters, said the $40 million arena he plans to build for his indoor football team could be completed by next April, but he is still waiting on approval from Jackson Mayor Frank Melton and the city council to start the project.
“Time is of the essence,” Disotell told the Jackson Clarion-Ledger. “I’ve presented everything I can to the people with the city. The ball is on the mayor’s side of the court at this point. But I really feel good about things. It’s all moving in a positive direction.”
The arena football team was scheduled to open their inaugural season on the Gulf Coast earlier this month, but damages from Hurricane Katrina forced the team to delay their first game until 2007.
Two weeks ago, Mayor Melton told the paper that there were “plans in the works” to tear down 31-year-old Smith-Wills Stadium, a city-owned facility primarily used for baseball, and build a multipurpose arena on its site. Potential roadblocks still exist, however, including a long-term lease at the stadium, and the time it would take to build an arena like the one Disotell is planning. –by CelebrityAccess Staff Writers
