Cooper, Hahn Drop Lawsuits in Sale of Sports Arena Lease

SAN DIEGO — Negotiations to sell the lease to operate the San Diego Sports Arena--a transaction in the works since February, 1991--cleared a hurdle Friday when the buyer and seller dropped lawsuits against each other.

Harry G. Cooper and Richard Esquinas, lease holders, originally agreed to sell the arena lease to a group including developers Ron Hahn and Sam Marasco in 1991. That deal was regarded as the first step toward Hahn’s developing a downtown sports arena that would be home to, among other events, major-league basketball and hockey.

But closing the deal went into overtime.

Cooper and Esquinas sued July 2, seeking a ruling that the 1991 sale agreement had expired.

Hahn and Marasco countersued July 13, seeking to have the terms of the 1991 agreement enforced.

A statement issued by a Hahn spokesman said, “The negotiations are ongoing, and both sides are optimistic that the sale will be completed in the near future.”