Can luxurious new digs keep Dallas teams on top?

We've seen it happen time and again. Teams the likes of the Seattle Mariners, Los Angeles Lakers, Colorado Avs and Tennessee Titans get lavish new digs and their on-field fortunes take huge upturns. New environments bring new attitudes about life, love and the pursuit of happiness and all of a sudden these cities and teams find themselves at the top of their game.

Well, if all it took was some puny $200 – 300 mil pad to get those guys all riled up, the Dallas Stars and Mavericks should become "Kings of the Hill" in their respective sports when they move into their just completed $420 mil American Airlines Center for their upcoming seasons. This isn't going to be anything like your daddy's new sports arena!

It won't even be anything like your twin brother's new sports arena! We're talking the most expensive building in the Dallas skyline here with amenities and opulence that will put Atlanta's Philips, Denver's Pepsi, LA's Staples and Seattle's Safeco venues to shame. You know guys; you get what you pay for! Try maybe spending another $100 mil next time, OK? And by the way, could you get The Eagles in here for your opening ceremonies?

If the wine and brie crowd at LA's Staples Center thought their new hangout could never be topped, they need to take a virtual tour of what's on tap for the rich and famous at Dallas' new sports Mecca. Come on over Jack Nicholson. We have a Premium Level seat reserved just for you.

With tech-savvy owners Mark Cuban, Ross Perot, Jr. and Tom Hicks involved, the new Dallas arena will quickly become known for its cutting-edge technology for the media covering the events as well as the creature comforts afforded to spectators.

The super-highway of fiber-optic cabling buried in the design of the arena will allow for all of the state-of-the-art toys and gadgets Maverick's owner Mark Cuban has become known for. All of this hi-tech infrastructure will support more digital signage than any other existing venue to date. It will allow for the latest in replay boards, sound and PA systems, the biggest eight-sided scoreboard you've ever seen, and Internet access for those with the need to be seen and access their e-mail at the same time.

Hoping to put to rest all the cries about soft NHL ice in Texas, Tom Hicks has boosted the ice making capabilities of his Stars' new home to the max. With a 312-ton ice making capacity, Hicks ran eight miles of pipe under the floor, cramming in piping every three-and-a-half inches, instead of the usual six, to keep the surface frozen. He also raised the air-conditioning capacity of the new place to 4600 tons. Could I have one of those delivered to my home please?

And just so they won't be left behind anytime soon, arena builders have included extra cabling raceways, conduits, ducting and utility closets for gadgets and technology not even thought of yet. Rather far sighted these Texas billionaires!

Team management will have fun playing with their new toys too! New ticket tracking technology will allow Hicks and Cuban to know just who is coming to games, what they like to eat and how they spend their green, so that arrangements can be made to part them with as much of it as is possible.

And you can bet the back forty there will be plenty of chances to spend, spend, spend! With world-class restaurants at each end of the complex you can watch the game in progress or just take in the Dallas skyline. Between the two there will be 220 concession stands hawking Chicago dogs, lobster tacos and sushi. This place is going to play havoc with my stomach!

High-browed economists that we are, we all know that these new monster arenas have to draw their primary income from the sale of luxury suites. Dallas' new joint will have plenty of those. With 141 Luxury suites and an entire level dedicated to high-dollar Platinum seating offering fine dining, Internet access and concierge service, Dallas' finest will be able to be seen at the game, get the car detailed, and have flowers delivered back home to momma during the course of a game.

All of this sounds like money in the bank and certain success for everybody involved, right? Well, that hasn't always been the case when pro teams got their luxury seats and ate their caviar too.

Ticket prices for pro sporting events climbed about 70% from '91 to '99 while consumer prices only rose about 23%. Moving to new arenas drove ticket prices up even further. In '99 NHL ticket prices rose about 6.8% in general while teams with new arenas that year jacked prices up between 18 to 67%.

While opening a fancy new venue used to be a sure-fire fan attraction, the high cost of all of these high-tech amenities could backfire on some high-rolling owners. Of the 16 teams that moved into new or refurbished homes from '95 to '99, nine saw a downtrend in attendance by the third year.

With rising construction costs and greater dependency on luxury box revenues to pay off loans teams are facing the fact that it's getting more difficult to renew leases for the lavish suites in their new digs. They may be forced to resell luxury boxes half-a-dozen times during the life of a facility to make it pay off. These guys may have to break a sweat here!

It remains to be seen if the deep pockets of Cuban, Perot and Hicks can keep the fans coming to Dallas' fancy new American Airlines Center and keep the Stars and Mavericks at the top of their leagues. But I'm determined to have fun watching what happens. Could you splash a little red sauce on my sushi and bring up my e-mail on that screen over there before the end of the period, please?