I’m intrigued by the willingness of the potential Preds’ owners (David Freeman, Boots del Biaggio and others) to permanently commit to the city of Nashville. Yes, there is a catch, and plenty of fanfare has already been made about (legitimate) taxpayer concerns, but this still strikes me as a genuine and well-intentioned offer:

For those who believe Freeman is trying to spring some kind of last-minute, moneymaking scheme on the city, it’s worth noting that his group — and not the city — has insisted on including provisions in a new lease that would:

Forbid new ownership to raise ticket prices above the league average.
Require new ownership to maintain a team payroll at least $5 million above the league’s salary floor if paid attendance averages 16,000 per game.
Require new ownership to donate all excess positive cash flow up to its $3 million request back to organizations in the Middle Tennessee community.
Freeman has consistently said that he and the members of his group aren’t interested in turning a profit.

“We’ve all been very fortunate. We’ve all made our fortunes,” Freeman said. “If we want more, we’ll go earn it in the private sector. We have to ensure that we don’t lose money on the Predators, at least not more than our committed investment, but we don’t need to make money off the Predators.”

This is definitely an apples to oranges comparison, but this potential arrangement has some similarities to the NFL’s Green Bay Packers. That team is literally owned by the city:

Based on the original “Articles of Incorporation for the (then) Green Bay Football Corporation” put into place in 1923, if the Packers franchise was sold, after the payment of all expenses, any remaining monies would go to the Sullivan Post of the American Legion in order to build “a proper soldier’s memorial.” This stipulation was enacted to ensure the club remained in Green Bay and that there could never be any financial enhancement for the shareholders. At the November 1997 annual meeting, shareholders voted to change the beneficiary from the Sullivan-Wallen Post to the Green Bay Packers Foundation.

I sincerely believe that Freeman and Co. are not looking to milk the city as their own cash cow. This is the kind of offer that can allow Nashville to compete as a successful NHL city despite being a relatively small market. The “insurance” provisions being suggested by Freeman’s group are rare in professional sports, to say the least. There are hurdles to clear, no doubt, but this is a proposal I hope the city can embrace.