Jim Kenney criticizes Eagles' handling of Temple's Linc lease

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Mayor-elect Jim Kenney has not been shy about voicing his opposition to Temple’s proposed on-campus football stadium.

His comments Friday were no different, though this time he turned his attention to the Eagles.

“The Eagles are frustrating to me. They are not the same, in my view, as community-committed as the Phillies, Flyers and Sixers are,” Kenney said after speaking at an event at the Community College of Philadelphia, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Kenney put his comments in the context of the public subsidies the Eagles received to build Lincoln Financial Field, noting that the use of taxpayer funds should imply a certain level of responsibility to the city. He also criticized the team and the NFL’s handling of concussion and domestic violence issues.

“They view it differently. It is a private entity and part of the NFL, and there is nothing I can do to force them to do the right thing,” Kenney said. “They have a very solid and stubborn attitude about the relationship between Temple and the Eagles.”

Temple officials are looking into the feasibility of building a proposed $100 million, 35,000-seat stadium on campus, which would alleviate these pressures. Kenney has urged the university to consider the potential impact a stadium would have on the surrounding neighborhoods and communities.

Instead, Kenney wants Temple to work on smoothing relations with the Eagles in order to renew its lease at Lincoln Financial Field, which runs through 2017 and options for 2018 and 2019. Temple reportedly pays rent of $1 million for usage of the facility, but for a new 30-year lease, the Eagles are looking for $12 million up front and $2 million annually.

“Let me say, I love Temple,” Kenney said. “I think Temple is one of the best institutions in our city, ever. But the neighborhood around Temple — because of factors related directly to Temple and unrelated to Temple, housing development and other things — has been disrespected.”

Kenney has separately talked with both sides. He has spoken with Eagles president Don Smolenski — not owner Jeffery Lurie, though — as well as Temple president Neil Theobald and board of trustees chairman Patrick O’Connor.

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