Downtown Phoenix, the heavy favorite when the race began, was eliminated because the board felt the issues regarding land availability and environmental clean up couldn't have been solved in time to have construction underway by August. The proposed Downtown parcel was adjacent to Bank One Ballpark and is owned by a railroad. The board also had a problem with parking issues and financing.

"Time has simply run out," says board chairman Jim Grogan. "They made an enormous effort, but they would need nine months to a year to address all the issues and put this together."

The TSA eliminated the Tempe/Mesa site because the financing package proposed put too much risk on the TSA. It was the most expensive of the sites to assemble and put in infrastructure, costing an estimated $78 million for infrastructure alone.

The site on the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation was never a serious contender. The site was considered too remote, diminishing the ability of the stadium to draw other non-football related events. It was 11 miles from the nearest freeway.

With the list winnowed to two, the TSA must now decide between an urban site with more existing amenities or a more rural site that would cost less to build on.

The site in Tempe is at the northeast corner of the Loop 101 and Priest Road, just north of the Tempe Town Lake and just south of the Phoenix Zoo. Mill Avenue, which represents the Valley's most urban experience with a thicket of shops and restaurants, is less than a mile away.

The West Valley site, which has the backing of more than a dozen West Valley cities, lies in Avondale, which is about 15 miles west of Downtown Phoenix. The site, at the northwest corner of the Loop 101 and Thomas Road, has little commercial development nearby, but backers of the site say they have commitments from hotels, retailers and restaurants that are ready to come in if their site wins the stadium. The site is being donated by John F. Long, a Valley residential developer who is building a 1,000-acre business park nearby.

The TSA will negotiate complete agreements with the backers of the two sites over the next 12 days and will present them to the board on Feb. 13, when a final decision will be made.