NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Jim Balsillie is renewing his efforts to buy the Nashville Predators.
The Canadian billionaire's latest pitch came in the form of a letter presented to the city's Metro Sports Authority saying he would not seek changes to the team's arena lease, the Nashville-based Tennessean newspaper reported Friday.
The Balsillie interest is separate from a group of primarily local businessmen looking to purchase the NHL team. That group is trying to negotiate tax breaks and a cap on losses with city officials before finalizing its deal.
The Balsillie letter, sent on the Canadian's behalf by Nashville consultant Bo Roberts, said he would take those ideas off the table and raise the franchise's fee for breaking the lease early to US$75 million from $16 million, minus annual operating losses.
The penalty would not drop below $25 million. The team's lease for the Sommet Center runs through 2028 if the team averages 14,000 tickets sold per game.
Balsillie, co-CEO of Waterloo, Ont.-based BlackBerry maker Research In Motion, had a deal in May with Predators owner Craig Leipold fall apart when he started taking season-ticket deposits in Hamilton after promising not to move the team.
Kevin Lavender, the sports authority's chairman, told the paper that Balsillie's letter was ''intriguing'' but noted that the local group, led by David Freeman, has exclusive negotiating rights with Leipold through Oct. 31.
In the letter, Balsillie also promised to spend at least the midway point between the NHL minimum and maximum payrolls and said he would welcome members of the local group into his ownership team.
