Friday, Aug. 07, 2009

Fever shares to be offered to public

By Ben Reynolds, Herald staff writer

Just how serious is the community about keeping the Tri-Cities Fever in town?

General manager Randy Schillinger is about to find out by putting the fans to the ultimate test.

Schillinger and owner Doug MacGregor have devised a plan to sell shares of the troubled franchise in hopes of raising enough revenue to keep the team afloat.

Schillinger did not disclose the cost of the shares or how many need to be sold, but he did say the shares are going to be offered at an affordable price and will be available to anyone who wants to purchase them.

"This is their chance," said Schillinger, who will unveil all the particulars of the plan next week. "We'll see how serious they are."

This is a last-ditch effort by Schillinger to appease MacGregor's request to find some local ownership in the team. MacGregor said he would fold the team without local ownership, but if enough shares are sold, MacGregor would stay on as a minority owner and keep the team in the arenafootball2 league.

In the past weeks, Schillinger has talked with several prospective investors, but nothing has materialized beyond some lukewarm interest.

Schillinger said the latest plan to save the team is in response to several community members asking him how they can help keep the Fever in the Tri-Cities. It's an idea he has thought about for a while.

"I think this is something that could work," Schillinger said. "It's kind of a community-owned team idea."

With a community-owned team, Schillinger said the investors will get a say in the workings of the team -- for example, selecting the general manager and the coach -- through some sort of an elected board.

One famous example of this is the NFL's Green Bay Packers, which is publicly owned and run by a seven-member Executive Committee.

While the particulars of the plan are still being finalized, the deadline remains the same. MacGregor said he wanted to find local ownership by the end of the month.

The Fever, which has been around since 2005, has played the last three seasons in the af2. The team just finished up its worst season to date, posting a 3-13 record, and has won just seven games in the past two seasons.

"Doug and I agree that local ownership is what is going to work," Schillinger said. "This is a way to get the fans involved."