The battle over control of Atlanta Spirit — which controls the Atlanta Hawks, the Atlanta Thrashers and the lease for Philips Arena — is in court again and covers some familiar turf.
The battle over control of Atlanta Spirit — which controls the Atlanta Hawks, the Atlanta Thrashers and the lease for Philips Arena — is in court again and covers some familiar turf.
We all know the outlines of the dispute. Steve Belkin wants out of the ownership group. The ownership group wants him out. They can’t agree on a valuation. Belkin sues.
That was three years ago. Since then, Belkin has kept his 30 percent stake in the Spirit but hasn’t put in a dime. The operations lose money annually, forcing the remaining owners to cover them.
Balkin says the two teams and arena lease are worth at least $500 million. The other owners, as well as an independent appraiser, says they’re worth $288.5 million.
Hence the lawsuit.
We’re not going to pretend to have any insights into who is right here, to be honest: read the AJC and decide for yourself.
