City Council approves final part of Sonics' lease

Associated Press

The Oklahoma City Council has approved the final portion of its lease terms with the Seattle SuperSonics, including a clause requiring the team to include Oklahoma City in its name upon relocation.

The team's food and beverage agreement for the Ford Center approved Tuesday was the last piece of the lease to be finalized.

It calls for the SuperSonics to get 40 percent of revenues from concession sales and 25 percent of sales from courtside seats, luxury suites and other premium seating areas.

The agreement also officially requires the NBA team to use Oklahoma City in its name.

City special projects manager Tom Anderson says that clause was inadvertently included in the initial letter of intent with the Sonics, but Tuesday's agreement makes it binding.

The SuperSonics' relocation has been approved by the NBA but the team's efforts to break its lease with Seattle are pending in federal court.