Council vote allows for Storm to extend lease

It looks like the Seattle Storm will call KeyArena home beyond this summer.

The Seattle City Council passed a resolution Monday that allows for negotiations with the franchise on a lease extension.

Resolution 31039 passed 9-0 on Monday afternoon, according to a council member.

The Council first proposed the resolution Jan. 28. A public hearing Feb. 5 was followed by a vote before the Council's Finance and Budget Committee on Friday.

The resolution requests that Seattle Center and Mayor Greg Nickels work with Force 10 Hoops, LLC, to extend the length of the lease, which is on a year-by-year basis.

Seattle, which went 12-5 at home last season, averaged 7,974 fans -- sixth-best in the WNBA. The Storm's average attendance in its eight seasons has been 7,799, with wins in 80 of its 133 home games.

"With San Antonio (Silver Stars), I always believed it was one of the best home-court advantages in the league," new Storm coach and director of player personnel Brian Agler said last week. "Hopefully we can bring that to life again this season."

The ownership group has until Feb. 25 to exercise the option on purchasing the Storm.

On the player front, Monday was the deadline for qualifying offers and core designations for free agents.

Seattle can negotiate with players beginning Tuesday and up until Feb. 18.