'"MOHEGAN SUN: DON'T BLAME US"

New London Day, Wednesday April 15, 2009 Section A pages 1 and page 4

MOHEGAN SUN; DON'T BLAME US

Etess says casino linked to obstructed views at Yankee Stadium in name only

By Lee Howard Day Staff Writer

If you've got tickets to the home opener at the new Yankee Stadium, enjoy the game, but don't blame the Mohegan Sun if you can't see a play in the outfield.

With the first official game in Yankee Stadium only a day away, the New York faithful already are grousing. But this time it's not about the lousy play of the overpaid players or the off-field antics of injured star Alex Rodrigues--it's about, of all things, the placement of the Mohegan Sun Sports Bar.

Turns out that Yankees baseball executives---men of the people all---decided turmoiled an exclusive sports bar overlooking center field that obstructed the views of more than ,1,000 fans. Only when fans compllained about tne obstuction---which makes it hard for people in two sections of the stadium to see action in parts of the outfield---did the Yankees' brass reduce prices there from the $12 to $14 range to a rock bottom $5.

According to an article in the New York Times, the obstructed views left a bad taste in the mouths of fans who attended two preseason games in the new stadium. But Mitchell Etess, president and chief executive for Mohegan Sun, which signed a three-year deal rumored to have cost ;42 million or more, downplayed the controversy Tuesday, saying "no ones b;a,ed is" for the sports bar's design.

"No one's saying that the Mohegan Sun sports Bar is blocking people's views," he said in a phone interview. "We never felt like Mohegan Sun would be held responsible."

Indeed, Mohegan Sun had nothing to do with the design of Yankee Stadium and doesn't run the bar itself or get any revenue from its operation, he said. Etess, a Yankees fan, said the naming of the sports bar simply gave Mohegan sun a branding opportunity in critical market for the casino operation.

"We just have our name associated with the stadium and the Yank es," Etess said. "people talk about it on TV. We've been partners with the Yankees for probably about 10 years."

Etess said he first got wind of the controversy about the 4,900 square-foot sports bar through blogger complaints forwarded to him. But he didn't seem particularly concerned that the obstructed view seats ---which are clearly marked on tickets --would spill over into any sort of antipathy toward the Uncasville casino, and he didn't seem inclined to try to reclaim some of the money the sun paid for the sports bar's naming rights.

"We have no issues with the Yankees," Etess said. "We've just kind of happy to ber associated with the Yankees. It's a very professional organization."

The bar includes game seats cost in up to $95, and others can gain admission by paying from$250 to 750 for a membership. The bar has a capacity of a little over 300.

Members will have the opportunity to mingle and watch the game from the high-top table bar area while enjoying premium sports bar food items such as the Juicy-Juicy stuffed burger, blue crab mini-tacos, pastrami grinder, sushi lobster wrap and truffle fries," according to an online promotion of the sports bar.

The sports bar reportedly has great views of the field and is expected to generate hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue. And that;a good thing, because cutting the price of more than1,000 tickets ts for each Yankee Stadium home game will cost the team, about $600,000 this season, according to the Times.

The Yankee approached Etess about naming the sports bar, which he said is part of a comprehensive marketing agreement that inclues using the Mohegan Sun name in print ads and directional signs. The casino also gets free tickets as part of the deal, which Mohegan Sun can use at is discretion.

"It's a great way to get ingrained into an amazing, conic place," etess said.