All right, hello and thank you everyone for joining us today.
I am here with Council Members Andrew Lewis and Dan Strauss.
Deborah Juarez could not be here, but she is certainly here in the spirit of this bill.
I'm also here with Seattle Stone co-owners Ginny Gilder and Lisa Brummel.
We are here to sign legislation that will allow the construction of an indoor sporting facility right here in Inner Bay.
We needed this legislation because the four-time, four-time WNBA championship Seattle Storm, you notice these big trophies behind me, doesn't have a practice facility.
The leading women's athletic team in the country doesn't have its own practice facility.
Seattle were better than that.
The Seattle Storm are our hometown heroes.
They gave our city so much hope through COVID.
I think watching those women grapple with life in the bubble as well as what was happening in the streets and having the courage to lead on the court and off the court and to come back with the fourth trophy was truly remarkable.
I think we were the only city in the nation that set up a vaccination site that had two gold medal Olympic people there, Sue and Megan, as volunteers.
That's the kind of contribution that they give to this city.
The Storm is our most decorated professional sports team in the city, and they are talented on the court and off the court.
Through Force for Change, the Seattle Storm supports BIPOC youth Young Women Empowered, The Residency, Treehouse, and so many other organizations in our community.
And that's not even touching on what each of the individual players and owners and people who work for The Storm do in their own communities through volunteer work or just supporting their communities.
I was fortunate enough to be one of the original season ticket holders in the Seattle Rain, which was the former basketball team, and the Seattle Storm.
College athletics, women's athletics, professional athletics are so critical to gender equality.
We know from study after study that Title IX was one of the largest things to move us forward as a country in gender equality.
Sports matter.
And for every young girl and boy to see the talented Storm players on the court and know that women can be strong and they can also be compassionate.
They can be competitive and they can still move off the court to improve their communities is so critical.
We've seen this city move almost heaven and earth to support our male sports teams.
And we love them, the Kraken, the Mariners, the Seahawks.
But here we are with a championship team and the chance to have a sporting facility, an indoor training place, for the generations to come.
I'm pleased we were really able to do this in a way that incorporated indoor recreational facilities with the existing type of facilities.
Our maritime and industrial lands are so important to who we are as a city.
To have this ability to have a compatible use was incredible.
I'm really excited to see this open, and I know having this facility will change the face of women's sports, not just here in Seattle, but really across the country, because the storm has led in so many ways and has set the bar and set the pace.
This change would not have been possible without the support of the council members behind me, and as I said, Council Member Juarez, who really navigated and made sure that we did everything we could to really think and reflect upon how we preserve the quality of our maritime and industrial lands, but at the same time invest Not just in the future economy of Seattle, but the future of Seattle to show that gender parity matters.
Women's sports matters.
And the Seattle Storm that has given so much to us, for us to have this kind of investment in our community into the future is really terrific.
And I think shows that we are still that city that thinks about the future, thinks about equity and equality.
and is going to do the steps we need today for Seattle, not just to come back, but to come back stronger, more just, and more equitable.
And with that, I want to turn it over to Council Member Dan Strauss, who will say a few words.
Dan?
Thank you, Mayor.
Good morning, still I believe it is.
Good morning, my name is Dan Strauss.
I'm Council Member from District 6 and also the Chair of the Land Use Committee.
I was honored to have the opportunity to co-sponsor this legislation with Council Member Juarez because we not only want to support our most winningest team, we know that we need to support our women's sports here in the city.
As the Mayor just mentioned, we have moved heaven and earth to support our male teams here in the city and I am just honored to be able to do the same for our women's team as well.
I'm honored to have the storm represent our city nationally and internationally and it's just an honor to get to be part of this process today.
The legislation that we passed, it does increase the maximum size capacity for indoor sports facilities.
It does not change zoning and it does not change uses that The use of indoor practice facilities was already allowed within this zoning.
So not changing zoning or use, we're providing a technical amendment to provide a pathway forward for the storm to build a practice facility that they need and they deserve.
public comment, Sue Bird did call in and shared with us the importance of having a practice facility that meets the needs of their players, because this is where they spend so much of their time, and with other teams around the country trying to scoop our best players, they are trying to lure them.
with these new practice facilities.
Currently, the Seattle Storm uses the Seattle Pacific University campus and their courts to practice.
So let me put it plainly this way, we're making our most winningest team compete with college students for court time.
With this bill and this legislation moving forward, we're allowing and providing the pathway for the Seattle Storm to build the practice facility that they need, that they deserve, that will attract the players that will continue our great legacy of championships, and give women and girl basketballers a place to call their own.
This legislation allows for this practice facility in many places.
I know that the Storm has their ideas of where they want to be.
I will highlight for everyone watching today and for co-owners, Jenny Gilder and others, that there are places in Ballard that also fit within this legislation that we passed.
And if something doesn't work out here, we'd love to have you in Ballard.
So I don't have much more to say, and I'll pass it to co-owner Jenny Gilder now.
I just want to take this moment to recognize the four championships, trophies that are beside me, the numbers on this poster behind me.
And as Jenny comes up, you'll see the rings on her fingers.
What was most important for me in this process is being part of the team to get all 10 fingers with rings.
So here's till tomorrow and I'm just honored to have the Seattle Storm represent our city nationally and internationally.
Thank you.
This is what happens when you wear fancy jewelry.
It is so great to be here talking about a practice facility for the Seattle Storm.
Seattle has a long tradition of investing in its professional sports teams.
We have T-Mobile Park, Lumen Field, Climate Pledge Arena, Can't Wait, and the Kraken Community Iceplex.
And now, I could not be more thrilled that the city has stepped forward and extended that tradition of support to its sole professional women's sports franchise.
While the Emerald City has been our home for 21 years, and we hope that will never change, The WNBA has changed and grown over that period, to the point that a practice facility is no longer a nice to have, but a gotta have.
Especially if we want to win championship rings on all these empty fingers.
I want to thank the city's leaders for seeing the need for change, specifically Mayor Durkin, who is bookending her tenure with sports initiatives, both privately funded.
First, helping to launch the revitalization and transformation of Key Arena into Climate Pledge Arena, and now helping to secure the Storm's Future as a championship-caliber franchise.
It's gratifying to have a city leader who not only avidly supports all our franchises, but recognizes how important it is to make room for the infrastructure needed for them to thrive.
I'd also like to thank Councilmember Strauss, who as Chair of the City Council's Land Use Committee, marshaled the needed legislation through the various steps of the review and approval process, and Councilmember Lewis, who really saw the possibility for his district in having a practice facility in Interbay.
Finally, even though she's not here, there's Council Member Deborah Juarez.
Quick to recognize the enormous potential for public benefit that all our professional sports franchises can offer, she has built on her work with the Kraken and OVG by helping to ensure a home for the Storm 2 while maintaining a balanced view on doing what's in the city's best interest.
Indefatigable, passionate, grounded in the facts, and fiercely well-spoken, a woman who won't take no for an answer and a woman after my own heart, Councilmember Juarez repeatedly made the case for supporting this Code Amendment, helping to secure unanimous approval by the entire City Council.
I appreciate her valuable commitment to make sure our community lives its values with respect to diversity, equity, and inclusion, not just in her district, but across all our neighborhoods.
To the mayor and to the council, I just want to say thank you.
It's tempting to discount the power of sports in people's lives.
After all, it's merely entertainment.
But tell me, then, why so many of the Greek and Roman ruins invariably include sports venues?
Sports isn't just in our blood.
It's in our DNA as humans.
The combination of dreaming and risking, striving, reaching, attempting to exceed one's capacities, sometimes surpassing expectations, and other times invariably falling miserably short, somehow grabs so many of us in the embrace of fandom.
And what does that experience of cheering on, seeking elation in victory, and often having to settle instead for losing gracefully accomplish, but give us countless points of emotional connection upon which we can build to generate a sense of shared community?
That's the ineffable power of sport.
The Seattle Storm is both proud and humbled by the role our franchise plays in strengthening our community.
We don't take the city's trust in us lightly, and we'll do all we can to broaden access to the pursuit of excellence and pursue more championships to make you all proud.
I now want to introduce Councilmember Lewis.
Janie, thank you so much and thank you for hosting us here this afternoon to really announce this great addition to District 7 and to the Inner Bay neighborhood.
And I lift up everything that's been said from the previous speakers about the immense cultural value of being the host to the Storm, the winningest sports franchise in the history of this city.
I lift up everything that's been said about the value of sports to our culture and to the civic well-being of the City of Seattle.
But I'm going to selfishly talk about how this reciprocal exchange benefits District 7 and benefits our neighborhood here in Interbay.
And how the ties between our civic planning and our city institutions and our neighborhoods and our sports franchises have created some of the most valuable partnerships in the history of this city and in the history of District 7. And I stand here as somebody who proudly represents Pioneer Square, just in the shadow of the great legacy stadiums in the Soto neighborhood.
I stand here as somebody who represents the Seattle Center, the epicenter now of the Pacific Northwest's latest and greatest hockey franchise, as well as the legacy home of not only the Storm, but the Seattle Sonics.
And we know that all of those neighborhoods are made stronger and more robust by the presence and investment of our partner sports franchises.
And as I stand here in a changing and growing interbay, I've lived in Seattle my entire life.
and having frequented the streets here in Inner Bay, be it the Red Mill just up the street, be it the golf course that used to be an old city dump, that Inner Bay is one of the neighborhoods in the city of Seattle that is going to be a neighborhood of the future.
It's going to see unprecedented growth.
That growth is going to be based on the assets that we cite here and the choices that we make.
Council Member Strauss, don't you dare take this storm practice facility to Ballard.
But we are happy to have it right here in the heart of Interbay.
And in this particular micro area of our Interbay neighborhood between 15th Avenue and between the Burlington-Northern Santa Fe Railway, a blossoming neighborhood is emerging.
All of this new housing that's right here at this intersection, taking in the new growth from the City of Seattle that we've seen over the last 10 years.
New restaurants and coffee shops coming in, in the evolving de facto, if not de jure, urban village that has been forming in the Dravis neighborhood.
This neighborhood needs a new heart and there needs to be a new nucleus of our civic identity and it's going to go right there in this lot that's across the street from us right now as we build this legacy practice facility that is going to serve this community for generations to come.
So with that, I'm going to hand it over to Lisa to close us out.
Lisa, come on up.
Thank you.
Thank you so much.
It is a very exciting day for this franchise, hopefully one of many to follow along.
When we bought this team in 2008, we had a simple principle.
Invest in this team and they will produce.
Well, they'll produce championships, but they'll also produce role models and people who we look up to in our community, people who contribute back, people who do the kind of things that we want our professional athletes doing today.
And I would say, through and through, we have done that as an organization.
About four or five years ago now, when Brianna Stewart and Jewel Lloyd joined our organization, basketball changed here.
We went from being at the rim to being above the rim because their athleticism, their style of play, and the way they did things had just evolved from where we started as an organization.
The way we're going to get to that next generation is to allow them to practice and to play and to continue to enhance their contribution to this community.
We do that through this practice facility.
It is so exciting to imagine what can happen when you have a dedicated facility for world-class athletes, soon to be Hall of Famers, and you let them have it where they can practice from morning to night.
They can talk about how they want to bring others along with them.
They can further their image as a role model, and they can continue to contribute to our community.
It's phenomenal to think.
My hope is this banner's not nearly big enough.
Not just for championships, but for what we will contribute to this community going forward.
Thank you to the city.
Thank you to the council members and the land use committee.
Thank you to everybody in the storm organization.
for supporting what we want to do here.
It's phenomenally exciting.
We hope that one of our legendary players, Sue Bird, will continue to help us on this journey.
And so, if I can get a one more year, I'd be happy to get it from everyone.
Thank you so much, and I'm going to turn it back to Mayor Durkan.
I'm going to sit here and sign, but just a couple last thoughts in closing.
Study after study has shown that so many leaders to first break the ceiling for women had some athletic involvement.
Title IX really was one of the greatest forces moving forward.
But it has changed so much in a generation.
And listening to both Jenny and Lisa talk about how the sport has changed and how you have to have a practice facility and what the players do, Juul Lloyd is probably the perfect example.
I went to Notre Dame.
I went there and started before there was varsity basketball.
Tried out and was cut, but was the statistician for the team because my roommates played for the team.
We drove around Indiana in a little van while the men's team flew to the same cities in a jet.
Fast forward, the sport has changed so much and it's changed so many lives.
I want to thank the fans also, particularly those fans who bring the little girls and little boys to the games, because you see in their eyes what the future can be.
They see these players, not just for the strength that they have, or the amazing capability they have as basketball players, but they see that women can be strong.
They see that you can grow up and do anything, and then you can do it off the court by contributing to the community.
So I just want to thank the STORM organization for their dedication over a period of years to do what they needed to do to continue to build a championship team, not just for Seattle, but as an example and a role model about women can do generally in sports.
We need gender parity everywhere in this nation.
And we need it in sports.
This is another step forward for our city to be able to do that.
And I couldn't be more excited as mayor to say, this is great.
And I'll follow on what Lisa said.
I had over the weekend the great opportunity to tour Climate Pledge Arena.
Before its big opening, I was able to go into the storms area, both for the coaches and the players.
Sue Bird, you're gonna love it.
And we fully respect anything you want to do, but it would be so wrong to open that arena without you at the court.
So with that, again, we respect what you want to do.
I'm going to sign this legislation.
One ring per pen.
She's displaying them, not giving them to me, to be clear.
Anyone who hasn't been to these signings, they use multiple pens so you can actually have a pen that was utilized.
I do want to say I'm sorry to Cassie Franklin, mayor of Everett.
But we thank you for your support.
She's a phenomenal person and has really supported this team.
The future in women's athletics.
Congratulations.
And Anthony, we're going to do some Q&A.
That's right, Mayor.
So thank you to the Mayor, thank you to our council members, and of course, to our co-owners, Lisa and Angie.
Thank you so much.
Thank you.
I'm really glad you were able to join us today.
We should move over to Q&A.
And so I think there are a couple of new faces and names on the honor of our next call today.
So let's just overview of how this works.
I will control your audio from my end.
You've already RSVP'd to me, and I'll call your name.
I'll introduce you and open your mic.
You will ask your question, and your question will get answered, and I'll mute your microphone again.
So we'll go down the line, and we will offer one question and a brief follow-up to everyone who's joining us today.
So our first question today will come from Erica Barnett, Publicola.
Erica, the floor is yours.
Hi, this is a question for Mayor Durkin.
The city's new industrial lands policy is designed to prevent non-industrial uses in industrial areas like Interbay.
And one of the reasons, besides protecting industrial businesses, is to keep property values at a reasonable level.
Do you have any concerns that this is going to raise property values in the surrounding area when rising property values have caused so much trouble for sound transit, and they're going to be hopefully opening a station in the area at some point?
Erica, those are great questions.
Thanks for raising that issue, because I know some people have had questions.
You know, as mayor, I, at the very beginning of my administration, made preservation of our industrial and maritime lands really a key priority for me, because I believe we need those good family wage, often union jobs in Seattle to have another step for our economic stool.
another leg, I mean, and to make sure that we have pathways for everyone.
It's part of our heritage.
It's part of who we are.
So I've been working on those issues throughout the four years of administration.
In the summer, we were able to actually get a breakthrough where we brought together a variety of stakeholders, both developers, people who were interested in maritime jobs, people who were interested in industrial uses, to see how do we preserve this capability going forward, but also recognize as a changing city how we build buffers and adapt to that.
We did intense work on that, and as you know, we proposed as SEPA to do some changes to our maritime and industrial lands to preserve what we think we need to in the future, but to loosen some things that we think would be around the buffers that could have different uses.
That process fit very nicely with the process for this legislation, because as Councilmember Strauss said, the zoning didn't change.
The use didn't change.
It was the size of the facility.
And it fit nicely with our dedication to make sure that, number one, we continue to invest in the economic growth of our city.
And there's no question that the storm, in addition to all the things that we've cited here, are good for the economy of our city.
Second, to really invest in those uses that are going to be more favorable to a neighborhood and community.
As councilmember Lewis just noted the benefits that this facility is going to have for the neighborhood We think are good.
So at this time, we really think that the you know when they publish the seat, but I think the last proof of that is We the the people who normally can't agree on anything when it comes to maritime and industrial uses in and around these lands there was support for this whether it was from labor or whether it was from other folks that have interest in that.
So I think that the fact that the council was able to act unanimously, that we didn't have the objections that we normally have in this use, and all the positives that that's going to bring, this really unbalances a great thing for our city.
Thank you, Mayor.
Erica, follow-up?
Just any concerns about Sound Transit's ability to buy property and open a light rail station there once this was sold?
So as you know, the Sound Transit development for Ballard has been delayed.
I'm very confident that our decisions today to invest in women's sports, gender equity, and the vitality of the industrial lands, we'll work consistently with what Sound Transit has to do.
You know, I sit on the Sound Transit board.
There's a variety of pathways, but I think that there is a way to build Sound Transit through a tunnel to Ballard and have the great development that we're going to have here.
Thank you, Mayor.
Our next question will come from Marissa Nall, PSBJ, followed by Mayowa Aina from KNKX.
Marissa, the floor is yours.
Hi, yes.
Can you give me any sense of the size and cost of this project and any specific features that it will entail?
size and cost of the project and the features it will entail?
The short answer is we don't know.
The more lengthy answer is we are currently working with some architects led by Kathy Berg at ZGF, our owners rep Maria Barrientos of Barrientos Ryan, and Slive Hattery for some architectural design.
We are obviously, since we're just signing legislation today, in the very, very early stages of this.
It is our goal to build a world-class facility with the kind of equipment and access that our players will need to grow the game and to grow their skills.
So we intend to use the land that we now have available to us.
We intend to use all of it.
In exactly which form, we won't know until we really get through the architectural process.
But thanks for the question.
Thank you.
Marissa, follow up?
Or would you like to go ahead?
I think that was a very direct and honest answer to what potential features may be at this sports facility.
I think one of the most important features of this forthcoming sports facility is it gives a dedicated space for women and girl basketballers to have their own space in this city.
a space that is not shared, that when they walk in this door, they know that it is theirs and it is a place for them to learn to be the leaders of our future.
So I think the most important feature that we have is a place for them to call their home.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Marissa, follow-up?
Yeah, are there any other key hurdles that have to be worked out prior to the beginning of this development?
There's just the normal hurdles of designing something, going through the permit process, funding it, nothing extraordinary.
I can't imagine that it's any harder than winning four championships, but I guess we're going to find out.
Thank you very much.
Our next question will come from Mayowa Ina from KNKX, followed by Jeff Brown, Storm Chasers.
Mayowa, the floor is yours.
Hi.
So for people who don't really follow like the business or economics of sports, who might think, you know, what's the big deal?
It's kind of a practice facility.
Could you speak to what these types of investments mean to a team and to a franchise and what it will allow you to actually do in kind of more literal terms?
Sure, I can speak to the question.
Right now we practice in a college gymnasium and we have limited access to when we can be on the court because it's obviously on a university campus and the college students need to use that.
So our players show up at an exact time and leave at an exact time.
Um, if they wanted to do extra shooting, they actually have to go to another facility on their own.
We don't have access to any other facilities other than this.
So the notion that we would dedicate an entire facility to them opens up a world of possibilities for their skill development, their team building, their ability to be role models, um, and- and really just, you know, the sky's the limit on what- what they're going to be able to accomplish with this dedicated facility.
Mayowa, follow-up.
Yeah, and just one other question.
I think as I was reading, it said that there was a facility for the storm, but also the change allows any business to do this sort of development for indoor recreation and sports facilities.
Am I understanding that correctly?
Yes, you are understanding that correctly.
And so here is me urging the storm to get their permits in.
Thank you very much.
Our next question will come from Jeff Brown, Storm Chasers, followed by Anna Boyko-Wyrock from KULW.
Jeff, the floor is yours.
Hi, yeah, I know OVG was heavily involved in the climate pledge arena.
Are they involved with this at all?
And then, is this going to be 100% privately financed or publicly financed?
OVG is not involved.
This is force 10 hoops.
The owners of the Seattle Storm are building this facility.
I'm sorry, what was the second part?
Oh, and it's all privately funded.
Jeff, opportunity for follow-up?
Oh yeah, so I know it's very early, but like ideally when would we expect completion of the facility?
Sorry Jeff, could you repeat that?
Oh yeah, so I know it's very early in this whole process, but as far as like an ideal completion of the facility, like how many years out are we looking at?
The ideal completion is tomorrow, because remember the one more year thing.
But it will be ready when it's ready.
Obviously, we want to stay on as quick a timeline as we can, because until we can get the facility built, we continue to have restrictions on our players' ability to practice.
So we'll get there as fast as we can.
Thank you very much.
Our next question will come from Anna Boyko-Weirach from KUOW, followed by Sarah Grace Taylor, Seattle Times.
Anna, the floor is yours.
Thanks for taking my call.
I'm just thinking of the Krakens facility, which is super nice and you know, open before they ever played a game.
And meanwhile, as you guys have mentioned a lot, the Storm are four time champions.
So what's the hold up in actually getting your own practice facilities?
You know, that's a really good question that goes far beyond Seattle and the status of women's basketball in the Pacific Northwest.
It's really an issue of the interest among the greater population in women's sports.
And listen, I'm a product of Title IX.
I'm a huge believer in Title IX.
But Title IX is about access to educational opportunity, including sports, if you are operating in a federally funded educational environment.
In the world of the WNBA, just like the world of the NBA, every major professional sports franchise in America, it's a market-driven matter.
And frankly, the Storm are now in a position where we see the economic benefit and, in fact, the economic requirement of investing in a facility.
So that we're willing to take this financial risk and do this for our city, our players.
And frankly, as Mayor Durkan said, the league as a whole is an indicator that we believe that women's sports is being embraced by the greater community and sees the value of supporting women athletes.
Anna, follow up?
Yeah, thanks very much.
So I know you guys gestured to the lot.
We're virtual, so I don't actually know what you guys are gesturing at, but can you give us the address and sort of describe what's there now?
I think the address is 1616 Bertona Avenue West.
It's right across Thorndike Avenue West from the Storm's offices.
What is there right now is a parking lot that has been there for over 10 years.
Thank you very much.
And our next and final question will come from Sarah Grace Taylor from the Seattle Times.
Sarah Grace, the floor is yours.
Thanks.
A kind of similar question to the last one.
Has there ever been a tangible attempt at having a practice facility before, or is this the first plan that you've had?
So I started rowing in 1975 and started dreaming of becoming an Olympian in the spring of 1976. And I finally got to the Olympics in 1984. I would say there's the same kind of trajectory with any kind of big dream, and this is a big dream for the Storm.
We've owned this team since 2008, as Lisa said, and we probably started dreaming of a home for our players that would suit our aspirations, and frankly, our players' aspirations, a few years after we bought the team.
So I hope that answers.
Thank you.
Sarah Grace, I'm going to give you an opportunity for a follow up, but I want to let everyone know Jeff with Como will be after you, so not the last question.
Go ahead.
Floor is yours.
Thanks, and I know you said it's too soon to guess the completion date, but do you have any idea of when you might start construction?
I'm hoping it's the day after we get our permit.
Great, thank you.
And next question, and I believe our final question, is Jeff Pahola.
Go ahead.
A little challenge to the storm.
I broke ground on the Kraken facility and I just went to the opening.
So I hope they'll get this done in the same time frame so that we can have those women you know, practicing as quickly as they can.
I also, someone asked about the economic value, and we've talked a lot about the intangibles, but there's actually a real economic value to the city, too.
The Storm and their fans contribute every day that they're here and they play.
I think it's, we see that in the new arena.
It's going to be at a whole new level.
We're going to have more fans there.
They're going to come to the city.
They're going to have a great time.
They're going to spend their money, and they're going to come back.
And so I think that there's both the economic impact that we have, which is undeniable.
But again, I just want to stress the intangibles.
I, as people know, I love sports.
And some of the most memorable times with my kids is taking them to sporting events.
And we've seen for years families in Seattle travel to Arizona to go to spring training and watch practice.
We've seen, and my kids have done it, to go to, you know, the VMAC to watch the Seahawks practice.
We want to have a place that is the home to the storm, where the kids of Seattle and the area can go and watch them practice and say, this is cool.
Thank you, Mayor.
And our next question from Jeff Pahola.
Floor is yours.
I guess my question would be with regards to the planning of this, is this going to be a public facility as far as fans able to come watch the practices, that sort of thing?
And if so, why is that?
Why do you want the practices to be open to the public?
Because we see that with the Seahawks, we see that with the Kraken, we see that a lot of times with the Marlins as well.
So this is primarily a private facility, but obviously we want the community to share in what we do.
I can't say we have an exact plan right at the moment of how that will happen, but we will absolutely incorporate our community and give people the opportunity to see what we're doing here.
But it is primarily a private facility.
Yep, follow up.
Yeah, and as a quick follow-up, are your plans to have some of the young girls' youth teams, whether it's club or high school, to use some of the facilities here as well?
Is that something that you're looking at?
Yes, absolutely.
We want to see youth involved in growing their game as well.
So yes, we do see that.
Thank you very much to all of our press who joined today and thank you to our speakers.
Mayor Durkin, I'd like to hand it back over to you if you have any final words or anyone else.
I think it is pretty simple.
Go Storm.
One more year.
Five championships.