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March 29th 1984

HarassedOffTheSite

By HarassedOffTheSite
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HarassedOffTheSite Walk On

HarassedOffTheSite

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http://forums.colts.com/index.php?/blog/118/entry-277-the-move-to-indianapolis-the-true-story/

 

"Meanwhile in Baltimore, the situation continued to deteriorate. On March 26th the Maryland state Senate considered taking up two proposed bills. The first called for the state of Maryland to offer Colts Owner Robert Irsay $40 million to purchase the team and then sell it back to local investors. The second called for the state to condemn the Colts and begin eminent domain proceedings to take the team from Irsay outright (an idea first floated in a memo written by Baltimore mayoral aide Mark Wasserman). The Maryland politicians chose the eminent domain route and on March 27th the Maryland Senate passed legislation giving the city of Baltimore the legal right to seize ownership of the Colts Franchise. Colts owner Robert Irsay said that the move to Indianapolis was "a direct result" of the eminent domain bill and Colts counsel Michael Chernoff would say of the Senate vote: "They not only threw down the gauntlet, but they put a gun to his head and cocked it and asked, 'Want to see if it's loaded?' They forced him to make a decision that day."

On March 28th citing the recent moves by the Maryland legislature, the Phoenix group withdrew their offer. Robert Irsay then called Indianapolis Mayor Hudnut in order to expedite negotiations. Indianapolis offered the Colts owner a $12,500,000 loan, a $4,000,000 training complex, and the use of the brand new $77.5 million, 57,980 seat Hoosier Dome. And Irsay agreed.

In turn Mayor Hudnut called his neighbor and friend, John B. Smith who was the chief executive officer of Mayflower Transit, an Indiana-based moving company, and Hudnut asked him for assistance. Smith dispatched twenty-two Mayflower trucks to the Colts' facility in Owings Mills, Maryland arriving at 2:00 AM the following morning. The motivation for the late hour was the realization that the following business day, the Maryland House of Delegates would also approve the eminent domain bill which if signed by the Maryland Governor, would result in Irsay losing ownership of his NFL franchise. Mayflower workers arrived and loaded all of the team's belongings and the trucks left for Indianapolis.

By 10:00 AM the following morning the Colts franchise was completely gone from Baltimore.

Later that day the Maryland House of Delegates did indeed pass the eminent domain bill by a vote of 103-19 and the legislation taking control of the Colts was then sent to Maryland Governor Harry Hughes who signed it immediately (at that point, in the state of Maryland the Colts franchise no longer belonged to Robert Irsay).

Departing Maryland, each of the Mayflower trucks took a slightly different route on the way to Indianapolis. This was done to confuse the Maryland State Police, who could've been called on to put a stop to the move. Once each van was at the Indiana state line, it was met by Indiana State Police, who escorted each van to the Colts new home in Indianapolis.

On March 29th Baltimore representatives wired a $40 million offer to Irsay to purchase the team. However, the Colts owner did not respond. Unlike the aforementioned eminent domain legislation, no bill had been passed providing for the funds being offered. That day Baltimore's Mayor Schaefer, appeared on the front page of the Baltimore Sun in tears. After the Colts left and in spite of his earlier stance that the city of Baltimore would not build a new stadium, the politician immediately prioritized the building of a brand new stadium. Putting it at the top of his legislative agenda.

Later John Moag, Jr., chairman of the Maryland Stadium Authority, stated in sworn testimony before the U.S. Senate subcommittee responsible for the Fan Freedom and Community Protection Act: "It was the failure of our local (Baltimore) and state elected officials in Maryland to provide the Colts with a firm proposal for a new stadium that led Mr. Irsay to accept an offer from Indianapolis to play in a new dome in that city."

Indianapolis Mayor Hudnut held a press conference March 29 to announce an agreement had been reached and the team was on its way to Indianapolis. The deal was sealed March 30 with approval by the Capital Improvement Board, which operated the Hoosier Dome. Two days later, 20,000 new Colts fans cheered as Mayor Hudnut proclaimed March 29, 1984...

..."one of the greatest days in the history of this city."

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notlucktyballard Walk On

notlucktyballard

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I grew up in Baltimore and was just a kid when the Mayflower trucks showed up.  I never fully understood why this was happening to my team.  This article was very informative.

 

Unlike most Colt fans from MD...........I continued to follow the team.  No reason to quit on the team because the state was attempting to take what was not theirs.

 

Irsay may have been a jerk but he did the right thing.  Way to go Robert.........best decision he ever made.

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HarassedOffTheSite Walk On

HarassedOffTheSite

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I remember watching footage the Mayflower Trucks coming to Indy 

 

I remember waking up on the 29th, climbing down from my top bunk, looking out my window to an all white landscape, turning on my little 8" black & white T.V. to the breaking news that the Colts had moved to Indianapolis. I was like: The Colts? Who are the Colts?!

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Fx Stryker Walk On

Fx Stryker

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do you live in Indy?

 

Born and raised in North Eastern Pa. Currently reside by Pittsburgh. Ironically my father's family is from Baltimore, but that was a few years before they even had football. Also has no bearing on my family's fanhood.

 

Without cities there are no teams. Cities, fans, are the lifeblood of a franchise. If they don't support you, you won't last long.

 

Yes, but the cities don't own nor are entitled to anything of the franchise. That was my intentions.

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mahagga73 Walk On

mahagga73

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Me and my Dad were Colt's fans from the 50' s on for him and 70's on for me. We are from Central Illinois and even though we respected the Baltimore Colt's tradition ans even went to Baltimore Colt's games it was an extreme stroke of luck they moved so close. Now I can go to all the games and back in the day we used to drive to Crawfordsville every week and watch the games before Sunday Ticket came along. Our lives changed forever because of that move, we ate, slept, and breathed  Colt's till he died and I always will love the shoe.. It's amazing how far they have come in Indy.

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mahagga73 Walk On

mahagga73

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So that means on 3/30/2014 the colts will have been in INDY longer then they where in BALTIMORE :)

Yep, the bottom line is the city of Baltimore played chicken with Irsay and he called their bluff. It really is that simple when you break it down.

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mahagga73 Walk On

mahagga73

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I'll root for the COLTS no matter where they are, except LA.

 

I'll root for the COLTS no matter where they are, except LA.

That was a possibility at one point before Manning came in and saved the franchise.  A small, but distinct possibility that got some traction and play in the media .LA was willing to, and still is, give a sweet deal to a team wanting to move, and it will happen here real soon I believe.

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HarassedOffTheSite Walk On

HarassedOffTheSite

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haha that guy is literally reading from my Wikipedia entry. He ginned up two of his own transitions and one brief point but the overwhelming majority of his narration is lifted straight from what I wrote...and how I wrote it. But, he does begin by sourcing Wikipedia so... :)

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HarassedOffTheSite Walk On

HarassedOffTheSite

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Yep, the bottom line is the city of Baltimore played chicken with Irsay and he called their bluff. It really is that simple when you break it down.

 

I think you give the politicians in Baltimore too much credit. Baltimore had a well-entrenched policy of condemning private property and siezing it with eminent domain laws. They honestly assumed they could do it with the Colts as well. It was their idea to create the legislation to condemn the Colts. But they did not consider that condemning physical structures, buildings and land is nowhere near the same as condemning a business (people & paperwork) that can get up and walk out the door.

 

It wasn't so much they were playing chicken....they actually thought they were going to get away with it. They were just as stunned as the citizens of Baltimore were.

 

Politicians. -smh-

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unitaswestand Walk On

unitaswestand

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I grew up in Baltimore and was just a kid when the Mayflower trucks showed up.  I never fully understood why this was happening to my team.  This article was very informative.

 

Unlike most Colt fans from MD...........I continued to follow the team.  No reason to quit on the team because the state was attempting to take what was not theirs.

 

Irsay may have been a jerk but he did the right thing.  Way to go Robert.........best decision he ever made.

 

I have never lived in Baltimore or Indy.  But I have been a Colts fan since I was very little and Bert Jones was the QB.  I will always be a COLTS fan regardless of what city they call home.

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