The Tourism and Sports Authority, which will select the site for the 73,000-seat stadium, has informed two of the five communities vying for the stadium that they have serious issues with their proposals. The site in downtown Phoenix doesn't appeal to the TSA because it doubts that the site could be purchased and prepared in time for an August construction start date, and the site along the Mesa/Tempe border would cost the TSA too much to build on.

If neither site can sufficiently answer the TSA's concerns they will be effectively out of the running for the voter-approved stadium.

Backers of the downtown Phoenix site say they will have a purchase agreement with the owner, Union Pacific Railroad, in place by the time the TSA makes it final decision in mid-February. They also say that the site has no serious contamination issues, that clean up could be completed by June.

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