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Arizona Coyotes could be heading back to Phoenix after submitting application for land to build an arena

The Coyotes have submitted an application to purchase state trust land in Phoenix, but there are still many steps before the arena could be built.

PHOENIX — The Arizona Coyotes have submitted an application for state trust land in north Phoenix as a home for their new arena, the team confirmed to 12News on Friday. 

The Arizona Republic was the first to report on the application. 

The Coyotes confirmed that they have applied for the land, but gave no further comment to 12News.   

"We have every intention of staying in the desert," a post from the Coyotes on X, formerly known as Twitter, read. "We owe it to the best fans in the world to make it happen."  

This is the first step in the latest chapter of the Coyotes' search for a new home after being evicted from what is now known as Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale. The Coyotes had played in Glendale since 2003.  

If the application is approved, the land will then go to auction where other bidders could buy the land. 

The next steps would also include financing, how to build infrastructure and potential government tax benefits.  

The Arizona State Land Department Board of Appeals will next meet on Feb. 8. Neither the Coyotes nor their apparent development firm, Miracle Development, are currently on the agenda, but could be added up until the morning of Feb. 7. 

The application is for 200 acres of state trust land just northwest of the Loop 101 on Scottsdale Road. It was filed in June 2023 by the Fennemore Craig law firm, according to the Coyotes.   

This is the same piece of land the team was tied to in a report by PHNX Sports' Craig Morgan back in December.     

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman spoke about the Coyotes' hunt for a new arena at the league's All-Star Weekend in Toronto. 

"There's nothing new," Bettman said. "(Coyotes Owner) Alex Meruelo is focused on one piece of property and we're focused with him on what that timeline is and my guess is that's something that will be addressed within the next few weeks in terms of the timeline."    

Bettman also said he believes in Meruelo's ability to get an arena built in the Valley.  

"Alex Meruelo, as recently as last week, told me he was certain he was going to get this done and I don't make it a practice of contradicting owners unless I have hard facts to the contrary," Bettman said. "And I'm both hopeful and reasonably, reasonably confident that he's going to do what he says."       

"We are fully committed to Arizona & hope to share exciting news with all of you soon," a statement from the Coyotes, posted on social media, said. "Arizona is home & the future is incredibly bright here."  

Since leaving Glendale, the Coyotes have been playing at Mullett Arena on Arizona State University's Tempe campus. That arena only seats about 4,600 fans for NHL games, which is the smallest in the league by more than 10,000 seats. 

The Coyotes attempted to build their arena and entertainment district on a 46-acre plot of land in Tempe at the intersection of Priest Drive and Rio Salado Parkway, but the move was defeated by voters in May 2023.  

Since then, the Coyotes have not officially announced where they are planning to build their new arena, but owner Alex Meruelo has been tied to land in Mesa, where he executed a letter of intent to purchase a plot of land in August 2023.  

12News political insider Brahm Resnik and sports reporter/anchor Cameron Cox contributed to this report.

Arizona sports 

The city of Phoenix is home to five major professional sports league teams; The NFL's Arizona Cardinals, NBA's Phoenix Suns, WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury, MLB's Arizona Diamondbacks and NHL's Arizona Coyotes.

The Cardinals have made State Farm Stadium in Glendale their home turf and the Footprint Center in downtown Phoenix is home to both the Suns and the Mercury. The Indoor Football League’s Arizona Rattlers play at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale. The Coyotes play at Mullett Arena on ASU's Tempe campus.

Phoenix also has a soccer team with the USL's Phoenix Rising FC, who play at Phoenix Rising FC Stadium in Phoenix.

The Valley hosts multiple major sporting events on a yearly basis, including college football's Fiesta Bowl and Guaranteed Rate Bowl; the PGA Tour’s highest-attended event, the WM Phoenix Open; NASCAR events each spring and fall, including Championship Weekend in November; and Cactus League Spring Training for 15 Major League Baseball franchises.

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