Investor group offering to pay for NBA arena in Seattle

SEATTLE - A group led by investor Chris Hansen that's looking to bring the NBA back to Seattle has offered to pay for a new arena with private funds.

Hansen's group sent a letter to the city of Seattle on Tuesday, acknowledging a changed landscape and offering to rip up a memorandum of understanding from 2012 that called for up to $200 million in public investment in the arena.

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Instead, Hansen's group will pay for the project privately. They will also contribute to a transportation project near the proposed arena that would help deal with freight traffic at the Port of Seattle, a sticking point in past efforts.

''We have concluded that a changed economic climate makes possible the private financing of the arena,'' the letter reads.