Architects for Dynamo Park about to be chosen

Well, well, well, fresh off of the news over the last few days about the kerfuffle, hubbub and hullabulloo about the Don's letter and screwing up Dynamo's negotiations with the city over the Dynamo Park deal, we get this little piece at the Houston Business Journal by Greg Barr (a big shoutout to DuNord for tipping off about this.):

Interviews were under way Tuesday with five finalists vying to design the proposed downtown soccer stadium that would be home to the Houston Dynamo.

A spokeswoman for Colorado-based ICON Venue Group, the developer in charge of the project, told the Houston Business Journal that the finalists include two local architectural firms that are partnering with national firms on their bids.

The Major League Soccer team, which currently plays home games at Robertson Stadium, is close to working out a deal with the City of Houston which is close to finalizing the acquisition of a chunk of prime acreage near Minute Maid Park for the $80 million stadium, which could open as early as 2010.

The Dynamo wants to have an architect in hand as it continues to negotiate the stadium financing package in which the club and the City would share the cost of the project, according to team President Oliver Luck.

So does this lend credence to the various conspiracy theorists that the gnashing of teeth over the last few days was a tad stage-managed? I don't know, but when I put my rose-colored specs back on in a few minutes, I'm going to feel a little better.

Or am I just grasping at straws?