The San Diego Padres Baseball Club Limited Partnership, owners of the Major League Baseball team, will likely come to market with a debt offering of up to $150 million, possibly within two months. The structure, which hasn't been finalized, would include a bridge loan that would be refinanced with a bond offering. Proceeds will go to finance the construction of its new stadium and to build some infrastructure surrounding it, said Fred Gerson, cfo. The company has already put in over $100 million in cash and equity, including land devoted to the new stadium, and needs to spend an additional $46 million to finish the project.
Construction of the stadium has been halted by lawsuits since it was approved by a city referendum in 1998, and has only recently broken ground. It is scheduled to open in 2004. With long-term financing in the form of a bond, the company would also build a parking garage for the stadium and other infrastructure. If the company decides to skip interim financing, it will go directly to a corporate bond offering with a maturity of over 20 years, said Gerson. The company is in negotiations with major banks and will make a decision as to its financing plan "very soon," he said, declining to elaborate.