New Stadium News

Cubs Unveil Revised Bleacher Plan Source: Associated Press, February 25, 2002 CHICAGO (AP) - A revised Wrigley Field bleacher expansion plan would scale back the number of seats and create a design on the outside of the park that is similar to the one inside. Residents of the neighborhood surrounding the ballpark complained that the initial plan would be too intrusive. ``We've taken the suggestions of our neighbors, local aldermen, city officials and design experts and created a modest addition with a classic look tha ....
Rob Neyer on Selig's Testimony Source: “The Hearing,” (excerpt) By Rob Neyer, ESPN.com, Dec. 10, 2001. ....[A]fter reading everything I could find and listening to Commissioner Bud far more than I'd prefer, here's what I think. I think that baseball teams are losing money as a group, though the losses aren't anywhere near $519 million, and the real losses are somewhere south, quite likely far south, of $200 million. But I also think that most of those losses, and perhaps all of them, disappear each time a ....
MLB figures incomplete Source: “MLB's numbers send mixed signals,” by Michael Hiestand, USA TODAY, 12/07/2001. In baseball, statistics are usually facts. In business, they're sometimes arguments. Major League Baseball this week dumped a blizzard of financial data meant to show the sport is losing lots of money - not the sort of thing businesses usually advertise. But in the latest of its many showdowns with its players union, MLB hopes to win sympathy in a labor struggle pitting millio ....
Contraction threat spurs subsidy offers in MN Source: “Minneapolis and St. Paul both have plans,” Associated Press, ESPN.com, 11/29/01. ST. PAUL, Minn. -- The incoming mayors of Minneapolis and St. Paul proposed plans Thursday to a state task force examining whether a ballpark can be built to keep the Minnesota Twins from folding. Minneapolis Mayor-elect R.T. Rybak called for a $315 million, 38,000-seat open-air ballpark to be built near the Target Center, with about two-thirds of the money coming from the team and pr>....
Dumbfounded [by contraction scam"] Source: “Dumbfounded,” John Brattain, November 28, 2001. I've spent the better part of the last couple of weeks sitting dumbfounded at my computer (all right, all right, *more* dumbfounded than usual). Although the contraction situation as respects Montreal is the one that makes my heart ache, it's what's unfolding in Minnesota that makes my head ache. I have two children and even a half-witted parent as I am knows not to do certain things. For instance--one of my kids goes ....
Tax Dollars, Ballparks, and Contraction Source: “Your Tax Dollars at Work — And at the Ballpark,” By Luke Cyphers, Sports Writer, NY Daily News website, 11/21/01. Lesson No. 1 in this contraction business: Get government off baseball's back. Just ask the people defending the Minnesota Twins. In arguing before a Minneapolis judge that the Twins have a duty to die at the whim of Commissioner Bud Selig, attorney Roger Magnuson said the team is a business, and should be allowed to close up shop like an old del ....
Bud Selig, weasel or worse Source: “The Daily Prospectus: Bastard,” by Joe Sheehan, www.BaseballProspectus.com, 11/7/01. Bud Selig is a sniveling weasel. He professes to have been hurt by the Braves' departure from Milwaukee in 1965, but got his own team by stealing it from another municipality--Seattle--just five years later. Now, he wants to take teams away from two other cities, again re-creating his pain for thousands, perhaps millions, of fans. Bud Selig is untrustworthy. ....
New Stadium Fad Ebbs Source: ”Even if you build it, they may not come,” By Mike Dodd, USA TODAY, 11/06/2001. When the small-market Indians moved from Cleveland Stadium to Jacobs Field in 1994, they jumped from the bottom of Major League Baseball in revenues into the top five. When the Milwaukee Brewers recently announced a ticket-price hike for their second season in Miller Park next year, they said they needed it to remain in the middle of the pack in stadium revenues. The distinction i.....
Yankee Stadium Renovation Plan Lame-duck Bronx Boro President Freddie Ferrer has developed a plan for renovating Yankee Stadium and building a "Yankee Village" in the neighborhood. This plan can be found at: http://www.bpferrer.org/yankees/Contents.asp ....
Chicago Mayor Blasts Ballpark Extortion Source: “Cubs, Tribune can Walk from Wrigley Field,” Sports Business News, October 22, 2001. If the Tribune Co. wants to pull the Chicago Cubs out of Wrigley Field, so be it, Mayor Daley said Friday, insisting he will not be rushed or bullied into approving plans for more night games and bleacher seats. That and this report from The Chicago Sun Times' Fran Spielman ''If they want to go, they can go. Are they threatening us? I get those threats all the time,'' the mayor said.  ....
Nader on MLB labor negotiations Source: Ralph Nader, “In the Public Interest,” Press Release, 10/17/01. This autumn, Major League Baseball has a unique opportunity to display to the American public and its sports fans that there is still reason to call baseball its national pastime. The occasion has nothing to do with the extraordinary record-breaking team and individual accomplishments of this season. Nor does it involve celebrating the completion of the memorable careers of two distinguished future ....
Sox sale and 9-11 fallout Source: “Sox sale is among the victims,” by Cosmo Macero Jr., Boston Herald, September 26, 2001. No one could predict the horror of Sept. 11, or the devastating economic fallout. So in that regard, the Yawkey Trust's big payoff may be just another collateral casualty of the first enemy strikes in this new kind of war. Here's what we could predict: Failure and folly by Red Sox management, one way or another. The big push to win it for Tom and Jean may have be ....
Stadium Scam Secrets: Inflating Economic Impact Source: “Overblown Claims Tarnish Reputation of Economic Impact Studies,” By Stewart Yerton, Newhouse News Service, September 3, 2001. When Texas A&M economist John Crompton was asked by organizers of a Texas festival to study the effect of the event, he measured the net benefits and concluded that the economic impact was $16.1 million. "When I reported this to the commission, they said, 'That's not acceptable,'" Crompton said. The reason the group rejected his find.....
New Stadiums Drive Up NFL Fan Costs Source: “Spiraling towards the sky: 2001 NFL Fan Cost Index,” Team Marketing press release, September 5, 2001. NFL average ticket price increases 8.7 percent to $53.64; new stadiums drive up cost for fans to attend. The teams with the most expensive ticket prices in the league heavily weigh TMR’s exclusive 2001 NFL Fan Cost Index (FCI) survey. Eleven teams fall above the league’s FCI, led by the Washington Redskins, whose fans can expect to spend $442.54 to bring th ....
Ballpark Blight in San Diego Source: Sports Business News, 8/23/01. Suffering Those Ballpark Blues in San Diego       Squires-Belt and Material Co. is no newcomer to the East Village, a longtime industrial hub of the San Diego region where warehouses are giving way to a planned redevelopment project featuring the San Diego Padres ballpark. The business has served drywall and plaster construction contractors from the corner of 12th Avenue and L Street since 1922. The fourth-generation family busin ....
Steinbrenner stadium claims debunked Source: “ Why Fix if it isn't broken - Yankee Stadium,” Sports Business News 8/23/01.   After the engineer who oversaw the improvements at Yankee Stadium late in the last decade said yesterday the 78-year-old edifice is structurally sound and does not need to be replaced, Yankees spokesman Howard Rubenstein agreed that the Stadium's structure is fine but spelled out several other reasons why Yankees owner George Steinbrenner still wants to replace the historic building. That and t ....
Denver Paper bucks naming rights Source: NEWS RELEASE: 8/8/01, Contact: Gary Ruskin (503) 235-8012. Nader Praises "Civic Courage" of Denver Post for Bucking Corporate Stadium Hustle Ralph Nader applauded the Denver Post for "an act of civic courage" in refusing to permit a corporation to rename -- and thereby redefine -- a fixture of the city's civic life. The statement followed the Post's announcement today that it will refer to the new Denver Broncos stadium by its nickname of "Mile High" stadium ....
How to Re-Energize Baseball Source: “How to Re-energize Baseball and Win New Fans,” David Leonhardt, NYTimes.com, 8/11/01. Here are places where baseball games last just two and a half hours, where batters spend most of their time at home plate trying to hit the ball rather than fidgeting with their equipment. There are also places where the fans of every team legitimately dream of a championship. There are even places where the teams that do fall to last place continue to inspire passion until the final w ....
Organizing Against Sports Rip-offs Source: “Antidote to Sports Rip-offs: Community Organizing,” by Neal R. Peirce, Washington Post, July 29, 2001. A multi-billion dollar wave of new stadium and arena building -- biggest in the history of the planet -- is throwing up dirt or about to start construction in U.S. cities. Estimated final costs for this latest spasm of new or expanded football, baseball, basketball and hockey venues -- almost every deal involving massive public subsidies -- run from Detroit's $32 ....
Detriot: what NOT to do Source: “Field of woes: Tigers on pace to post huge drop in attendance, by David Barkholz, Crain’s Detroit Business magazine, June 18, 2001. Owner Michael Ilitch's return this month to the management of the Detroit Tigers is unlikely to prevent another ignominious distinction for the club. The Tigers, which lost more games than any other Major League Baseball team during the '90s, are on course to suffer the worst second-season dr ....
Virtual Discussion of Stadium Financing. Source: "VIRTUAL ROUNDTABLE: The Fenway debate goes online," By Seth Gitell, Boston Phoenix, June 14 - 21, 2001. Aside from Joan Vennochi’s June 8 column in the Boston Globe, nobody’s been saying much recently about the Boston Red Sox’ efforts to build a new ballpark. That’s in the real world. But in the virtual world, Boston’s ballpark woes are front and center from June 11 to June 22 at www.politalk.com. Tim Erickson, the founder of Politalk, has organized a hig”....
Costas on the fading allure of sports Source: "Costas: Allure of sports fading," by Dan Bickley, The Arizona Republic, 6/24/01. Bob Costas may be the greatest broadcaster of his generation. He is master of ceremonies for the Olympics, the conscience of baseball, and the man who delivered Mickey Mantle's eulogy. At age 22, he was the play-by-play voice for the ABA's St. Louis Spirit. In the years since, he has won awards, critical acclaim, and his two variety shows - Later and On The Record - were fairly entert ....
Cubs propose Wrigley Renovations Source: “Cubs unveil Wrigley wish list,” By Michael Hirsley and Gary Washburn, Chicago Tribune, 6/18/01. The Cubs officially unveiled plans to add more than 2,000 seats to the bleachers at Wrigley Field and to expand the number of night games to 30. The Cubs unveiled Monday what they want to see in Wrigley Field soon—more bleacher and box seats, advertising signage inside the park and the touchiest item on their wish list, a dozen more night games a year beginning ine....
Patriots Ticket Prices Soar in New Stadium source: "Pats take a hike: Raise ticket prices for CMGI in 2002," by Michael Felger, Boston Herald, June 19, 2001. FOXBORO - You get what you pay for. And when the Patriots move from outdated Foxboro Stadium to plush new CMGI Field next year, fans most certainly will be paying for it. The Pats sent out a mass mailing to their season ticket-holders yesterday in which they announced ticket prices for their new $325 million, privately financed [sic] stadium and asked clients.....
Stadium name game may get ugly Source: “Stadium name game may get ugly: Divorce has been smooth in St. Louis, but bizarre in Miami; Millions of dollars at stake,” By Andrew Ratner, The Baltimore Sun, Originally published June 8, 2001. The football team owner got millions of dollars from a company that wanted its name emblazoned on a sports stadium. Fans expressed dismay, partly because they had never heard of the company and it wasn't even in their state. Things went sour: ....
MLB attendance down (but not at Fenway) Source: ”Plenty of good seats available around majors, attendance continues decline,” Paul Newberry, Associated Press, Jun. 9, 2001,. 03:10 PM. ATLANTA (AP) - Chipper Jones has gotten used to playing in front of thousands of empty blue seats at Turner Field. "I try not to notice, " the Atlanta Braves third baseman said. He's not alone. In Cleveland, tickets have gone unsold at Jacobs Field for the first time in six years. In Baltimore, a perennial losing team has taken a ....
Subsidy Scramble Source: "Fleet scores Philly off rival," by Scott Van Voorhis, Boston Herald, 5/23/01. In one of the most hotly contested sports financing deals in years, FleetBoston Financial Corp. will provide financing for a new Philadelphia Eagles stadium, sources say. In nailing down the deal to provide a $180 million loan for the Philly football arena, Fleet beat out a major rival, investment banker Salomon Smith Barney. As they battle for dominance in the lucrative sports ....
Fields of Bad Dreams Source: "Baseball's fields of bad dreams: New stadiums not a big draw," by Michael Gee, columnist, Boston Herald, 5/7/01. If you build it, they will not necessarily come. Nobody in Major League Baseball wants to hear that message. A new stadium is supposed to be the cure for any franchise's artistic and financial woes. Commissioner Bud Selig was in Florida recently, threatening that state's pols with the loss of the Marlins if they didn't fork over the dough for a new ya.....
Opposition to Taxpayer-Funded Stadiums Growing Source: "As public funding increases for sports, so does opposition," by RON KAMPEAS, The Associated Press, Fri, 27 Apr 2001 09:35:35 -0400. WASHINGTON (AP) - An all-American pastime may soon be coming to a ballpark near you: the tax revolt. Across the country, more and more fans, small businessmen and community leaders say using public money to build sports arenas for major league teams is "corporate welfare." They hope to unite long-simmering local protests into a natio ....
New stadiums not a big draw Source: "Baseball's fields of bad dreams: New stadiums not a big draw," by Michael Gee, Boston Herald, 5/7/01 If you build it, they will not necessarily come. Nobody in Major League Baseball wants to hear that message. A new stadium is supposed to be the cure for any franchise's artistic and financial woes. Commissioner Bud Selig was in Florida recently, threatening that state's pols with the loss of the Marlins if they didn't fork over the dough for a new yard. (Why Selig.....
Ticket Prices Undermine Fan Loyalty source: "Sky-high ticket prices are keeping many fans from arenas, ballparks, stadiums,"by Patrick Saunders, Denver Post Sports Writer, Sunday, April 08, 2001 Cameron MacArthur is a sports fanatic. The 50-year-old railroad engineer has been attending professional sports Cevents in Denver for 25 years. Butevery year he cuts back his attendance. Every year it becomes harder to justify spending more money just to keep pace. "The economics are totally out of control," MacA ....
CATO Institute hits stadium subsidies POLICY FORUM: "Home Run for Corporate Welfare: Taxpayer Subsidies for Sports Stadiums," CATO Institute, 4/2/01. Featuring Stephen S. Fuller, George Mason University; Dennis Coates, University of Maryland, Baltimore County; Raymond J. Keating, Small Business Survival Committee. Opening day in baseball-the time for home runs, strikeouts, and corporate welfare. During the 20th century, more than $14 billion in government subsidies went to the four major league sports-Major Leagu ....
Nader: Whose Stadium is it? Source: "Whose Stadium Is it Anyway? For Sake of Fans Everywhere, Fight For The Mile High Name," by Ralph Nader, 1/28/01. Sometime this week, the Metropolitan Football Stadium District Board of Directors is expected to decide whether to retain the proud Mile High name on Denver's new sports stadium, or to sell it to a corporation that wants you to say its name every time you talk sports. Invesco Funds Group Inc. is leading the charge of crass commercialism. It wants to pay $1 ....
Business Group Opposes Ballpark Subsidies Source: Press Release, SBSC, 3/30/01. Washington, D.C.—The Small Business Survival Committee (SBSC) published a report today—“You’re Out: Corporate Welfare for Major League Baseball”—by chief economist Raymond J. Keating.  The study highlights the enormous ballpark subsidies received by big league baseball teams over the years, explains the related economic ills, and argues that business should not be supportive of such taxpayer handouts. Keating observed: “As a huge baseball ....
SOB story "Red Sox are losing some selling points," Will McDonough, Boston Globe, 3/25/2001. The timing could not be worse for John Harrington and the Red Sox [management]. Harrington is in the early stages of selling the team, looking for the highest price he can get to fill the coffers of the Yawkey Trust. This is his fiduciary duty as leader of the trust. However, the economy has slowed to the speed of a Tim Wakefield knuckleball, and all the indicators appear to be thumbs down. He>....
Follow the Subsidies Source: Red Sox notes, Gordon Edes, Boston Globe, 3/25/2001. ...My buddy Chip, showing off his Lunenburg, Mass., and UMass education, figured out the puzzling schedule that has the Sox going from Florida to Houston and Milwaukee next weekend (for a night game followed by a day game, no less) prior to opening the season in Baltimore. Three years ago, the Sox played in Atlanta prior to opening the season in Anaheim. Atlanta is a short trip from Fort Myers. No problem. Two years ago,.....
Hiring of bankers doesn't soothe Sox suitors Scott Van Voorhis, Boston Herald, 3/14,/2001 Some of the high-powered business tycoons and billionaires gunning to buy the Boston Red Sox are chafing at the seemingly slow and uncertain pace of efforts on Yawkey Way to sell the team, sources say. Despite the team's decision to bring in an investment banking firm to help with the sale, some potential bidders remain concerned about what appears to be a lack of a clearly defined sales process, sources say.
Sox set deadline for suitors Source: Scott Van Voorhis, Boston Herald, 3/21/01. The train may finally be pulling out of the station on plans to sell the Boston Red Sox, with an early April deadline set for applications from would-be owners of the storied sports franchise, sources say. The deadline comes close to six months after Sox CEO John Harrington stunned the sports world by putting a controlling stake in the team up for sale. "It means they are trying to move the process forward," said .....
House speaker throws a hardball at Red Sox plan Source: Edward Mason, Boston Business Journal, March 2, 2001. As spring training gets under way, baseball fans were reminded that the national pastime is a business, when Chicago White Sox star Frank Thomas said he'd sit out unless he was guaranteed the money in the last six years of his contract. In case Red Sox fans thought the Olde Towne Team was immune--and how could they after seeing how much a ticket to Fenway costs -- House Speaker Thomas Finneran, D-Boston, ....
Ownership SOURCE: Excerpted from "Mugar benched," Steve Bailey, Boston Globe, 2/28/2001. As [Joe] O'Donnell, the lead partner, and [David] Mugar and [Steve] Karp have assembled their bid for the team, the three have become concerned about [Mugar's role in a bid to wrest control of the Sox from Harrington's faction in the 1980s]. I am told that Harrington has not explictly raised Mugar as an issue, but he has spoken approvingly of both O'Donnell and Karp while remaining silent on Mugar. .....
SIX Fenway Quotes in TOP TEN DUMBEST LIST "DUMBEST STADIUM REASONS OF 2000" WINNERS ANNOUNCED [SFP: Tim Naehring, Mayor Menino, Dan Duquette, Gerry Callahan, Brian MacRay, and -- of course -- Bob Ryan put foot in mouth over Fenway - see below] As local opposition to public stadium giveaways has mounted, the rhetoric from team owners and their political allies in favor of sports subsidies has gone, at times, over the top. The very "best" of the past year's malapropisms and bizarre statements have been marked by the fir ....
Councilor wants Sox to revisit Southie Source: Scott Van Voorhis, Boston Herald, 2/17/01 A top Boston city councilor says it's time to rethink the idea of building a ballpark near the South Boston waterfront. Maura Hennigan, who heads the council's powerful Economic Development panel, said yesterday that the Boston Red Sox should consider building a 44,000-seat ballpark on land near Fan Pier owned by Frank McCourt. Hennigan, who scoffed at a Students: Housing YES, Stadium NO Sources: Excerpted from "Students to universities: shape up on housing," Frederick Melo, Boston Tab, 2/15/01 AND The Boston Phoenix, 2/22/01 February 22 - March 1, 2001 City residents have an unexpected new ally in the fight to ease escalating rents and create more affordable housing in Boston: undergraduate students. It may take a splash of cold water for some to swallow, but a core group of students at Boston University say they no longer want to be considered the s ....
Mayor's Task Force Does His Bidding Source: "New zoning would allow for a new ball park," by Susan O'Neill, Boston Tab, 2/9/01 Amidst controversy, the Fenway Planning Task Force has given their stamp of approval to the city's guidelines for rezoning the neighborhood, and in turn, have given their nod to the proposed Fenway Park development. After more than a year of discussion, the task force has approved the Boston Redevelopment Authority's draft recommendations which were completed last month. As part of the ....
Kelly: Sox Fenway site plan is dead Source: Cosmo Macero Jr., Boston Herald, 12/23/00 City Council President James Kelly is urging the Red Sox to look outside of Boston for a new ballpark site, saying the team's current plans to build in the Fenway are "dead." "We would like very much for the Red Sox to stay right here in the city, but the cost of land is making a new ballpark look like something that won't happen," Kelly said in an interview with the Herald. "What the Red Sox may have to do is look outside the Cit ....
Land costs leap beyond Sox plan Source: Scott Van Voorhis, Boston Globe, 12/21/00 Red Sox plans to put up a giant new ballpark in the Fenway face yet another obstacle in the dramatic escalation in the value of the 15-acre site where the team wants to build. New city assessments of the more than two dozen properties making up the site showed an average 40 percent increase in values, and some key parcels more than doubled. Skyrocketing land values could hobble the team with tens of millions in prospective extra cost ....
State won't collect taxes for Sox Source: "State won't collect taxes for Sox: Team needs lease before getting money," by Cosmo Macero Jr., Boston Herald, 12/20/2000 The state is refusing to collect new hotel taxes to help fund a $665 million ballpark plan for the Red Sox because the team's deal with City Hall is in such disarray. The -point tax hike was supposed to take effect Nov. 7 - 90 days after a massive subsidy package was signed into law on Beacon Hill. But the Executive Office of Administration & Fi ....
New Sox stadium booster caught forging letters Source: "Supporters [sic] of new Sox Stadium overlook an error," Boston Globe, 2/4/01. It looked like a wave of community support for a new baseball park -- 25 letters from 25 people -- all passionately urging city planners to rezone the Fenway. The letters extolled everything from the economic development prospects to the beauty of the proposed stadium. But there was a curious consistency -- each added an "e" in Boylston. It turns out the typo was the work of just one person: Mi>....
Convention Center competes w/ballpark for funds Source: Cosmo Macero Jr., Boston Herald, 1/31/01. The troubled South Boston Convention Center project may be on a collision course with plans for a new Fenway Park - with both developments possibly forced to compete for the same pool of tax revenue. House Speaker Thomas M. Finneran yesterday opened the door to re-appropriating one quarter of 1 percent of the city's hotel tax to the convention center, now buckling under the weight of huge cost overruns and possibly slated for mothb ....
Fenway letter used bogus name SOURCE: Scott Van Voorhis, Boston Herald, 1/31/01 [BONUS EXCLUSIVE: Fenway neighbors call foul] An irate New York Yankees fan found himself inadvertently dragged yesterday into the bitter battle over plans for a new Fenway ballpark when his name appeared on a bogus letter supporting the stadium project. Wellesley attorney Peter Sorell, who just moved to the Bay State from New York a few months ago, said he was shocked to discover his name had been used as part of ....
Adversaries set to buck Menino Source: Steven Wilmsen, reporter, Boston Globe, 1/29/2001 "In a year when [Boston Mayor] Menino looks likely to escape opposition for reelection, his real grief may come from the councilors, who now head committes from which they plan to poke around City Hall, scrutinizing the mayor's performance and kicking up public dust storms over key issues..." "As the new head of the Economic Development Committee, [Boston City Councilwoman Maura] Hennigan now has a bully pulpit for her stand"....
Sox Stadium Plans Going Nowhere Fast excerpt from Field Of Schemes news by Neil deMause The Boston Red Sox, still spinning their wheels in attempts to line up financing for their new $665 million stadium, are reportedly planning to go back to the state legislature for more money, including agreements for the city to pick up any cost overruns on land acquisition and cleanup, and for any increases in parking revenues to go to pay off the team's stadium debts. Meanwhile, support continues to grow for alternative plans: one s ....
Naming rights strip stadiums of historic identity Source: Jeff Houck, FoxSportsBiz.com, 12/22/00 Say the words Fenway Park, Dodger Stadium or Wrigley Field and your mind evokes sepia-toned memories, even if you've never visited the parks. You remember Carl Yastremski playing a fly ball perfectly against Boston's Green Monster. You laugh at the thought of shirtless boozers atop the ivy bricks in Chicago's left field. You can almost smell the Dodger Dogs from L.A. And when you think of Alltel Stadium, you think of ... Wel.....
Eminent domain for Sox is off-base Source: Dana Berliner, op-ed, Boston Herald, 1/15/01 [excerpted] The power of eminent domain is the power to throw someone out of her home or to destroy a long-standing private business. It is one of the most drastic powers that government possesses. For this reason, both federal and state constitutions place two crucial limits on the condemnation of property. First, whenever the government takes property, it must pay “just compensation'' to the owner. Second, even if compens.....
Baseball Labor Strike Threatens New Stadium ”Red Sox' reign delay: Looming labor troubles give sale a tough deadline” SOURCE: Scott Van Voorhis, Boston Herald, 1/15/01 The Boston Red Sox' search for a new owner is beginning to resemble the team's quest for a new Fenway ballpark. And that, sports industry experts say, is far from a good sign. Close to two years after announcing plans to build a new ballpark in the Fenway, the Sox are still struggling to raise hundreds of millions of dollars in private financin.....
Neil deMause: The Great Ticket Crash Subtitle: The "Bottom Line" on Major League ticket prices and baseball's immediate future In case you missed it, the Detroit Tigers management did something unusual last month: They lowered ticket prices. That's right, lowered. As in, a ticket in the front row of the upper deck that would have run you $50 last season will cost just $35 in 2001. And those seats way out in right field, out beyond the foul pole? Why, they'll be a mere $15, down from $25 during the 2000 season. Ther]....
Study: Reform eminent domain Source: by Scott Van Voorhis, Boston Herald, 1/12/01 A study by the conservative Pioneer Institute calls for a sweeping overhaul of the state's eminent domain laws, contending current rules are increasingly used by local governments to take land for projects of dubious public purpose. Released yesterday, the study comes amid debate over whether the Boston Redevelopment Authority should be allowed to take land for a new Red Sox ballpark. Some business owners in the path of the ....
Council's new leader no Sox plan fan Source: Scott Van Voorhis, Boston Herald, 1/3/2001 Red Sox hopes of winning final approval for a crucial $212 million in city money for a new Fenway ballpark may have taken a body blow with Charles Yancey's sudden rise in the Boston City Council. Yancey, elected council president Monday, has recently become one of the staunchest critics of the team's proposal to build a 44,000-seat Fenway stadium. And, unlike James Kelly, the former council president, Yancey is not seen ....
Fenway Park demolition plan in trouble "Fenway Park plan in trouble; Sources: Sox balk at cost," by Scott Van Voorhis, Boston Herald, 12/17/00 Red Sox plans to build a giant, $665 million ballpark in the Fenway may be in jeopardy because of a looming overrun on land costs, forcing the team to send a desperate SOS to top political leaders in a bid to salvage the embattled project, sources say. But news of a pending secret meeting between Mayor Thomas Menino and Sox business allies who are seeking the city's help in cov>....
Sox renege on stadium deal, demand more subsidies Analysis by Randy Divinski for Citizens Against Stadium Subsidies The Boston Globe reports that the Red Sox are unable to finance their new stadium with the current arrangement for taxpayer subsidies worked out with the state legislature and Boston’s mayor in August (Meg Vaillancourt, “Sox pitch change in ballpark proposal,” 12/16/00, A1). Therefore the Sox have issued a series of demands for greater taxpayer subsidies. But, “Since both city and state officials rejected calls for simil”....
It’s NET revenue that counts Source: Gordon Edes, Boston Globe, 12/17/00, D16 No stroll in park More ammunition for the opponents of a new Fenway. Remember when Mike Ilitch, the pizza man who owns the Tigers, promised to turn the Tigers into a contender after they moved into Comerica. Well, Ilitch reportedly has frozen the team payroll at a middle-of-the-pack $58 million and may actually reduce it. Reason? Because of debt service on the new park and worries that the revenue streams could stop a year from .....
The Sox don't need our money Source: The Boston Phoenix (editorial) 12/14 - 21/00 No doubt about it: $160,000,000 for eight years of playing baseball is a lot of jing. Count the zeros -- that's $54,794.52 every single day, day in and day out, for the next eight years. That's what the Red Sox have agreed to pay Manny Ramirez to play left field -- and the operative word for Ramirez is "play." (Of course, that is $14,246.57 per day less than Alex Rodriguez is getting for his 10-year, $252,000,000 deal with the Texas R ....
Another view on Ramirez signing Source: Steve Marantz, Boston Herald, 12/13/00 Manny Ramirez may help the Red Sox on the field, but he's already hurting them at City Hall, where a proposed $212 million in public subsidies for a new ballpark in the Fenway is being held up by the city council. The $160 million contract Ramirez inked with the Red Sox raised a red flag with at least one councilor who had been undecided on the ballpark bill. "The contract situation is so out of whack - it says to me that t ....
Ramirez and Fenway $160m question: Will slugger's pact hurt ballpark plan? By Meg Vaillancourt, Boston Globe, 12/13/2000 ... Yesterday, Red Sox supporters hailed the signing of Ramirez, arguing that he will help the team fulfill its long-awaited dream of a World Series championship... Critics, however, contend that if the Sox can afford to pay Ramirez a record-breaking $160 million over eight years, the team should be able to find a way to build its proposed $650 million ballpark without pub ....
Fenway Friction Source: The Boston Phoenix (1/30-12/7, 2000) by Dorie Clark Tuesday's Boston City Council hearing on the Red Sox' proposal to build a new baseball park in the Fenway neighborhood turned into a sparring match between councilors and Mayor Menino's administration. The hearing, which was a joint summit of the Ways and Means Committee and the Economic Development and Transportation Committee, continued the forum held in the Fenway on October 30. That forum was meant as an opportun.....
Stadium Boom a Bust for Cities Excerpted from: Business Week, 11/20/00. Nearly 50 stadiums and arenas were built for major professional sports teams in the 1990s--with about 70% of the cost borne by the public. Supporters of these projects argue that the new stadiums generate enough economic growth, and noneconomic benefits like civic pride. New research shows that subsidies for sports stadiums may actually be an economic drag--reducing per capita income, according to one study by economists Dennis C. Coate ....
Menino withholds stadium info from CASS EXCERPTS FROM Steve Marantz, Boston Herald, 10/27/2000. Boston has become Spin City as Mayor Thomas M. Menino spends an unprecedented amount - more than even the governor - on public relations, yet denies administration critics access to basic public records.... The Fenway Action Committee, which opposes a new ballpark in the Fenway, has been denied its September request for records showing economic and financial calculations underlying Menino's $212 million commitment to land-taking ....
Why John Harrington put the Red Sox up for sale SOURCE: Jay Fitzgerald, Boston Business Journal, 10/16/00. "It's hard to escape the conclusion that [Red Sox CEO] Harrington, despite what his spinmeisters are saying over on Yawkey Way, decided to sell now precisely because proceeding with the current ballpark plan would almost inevitably reduce the value of the team." "It comes down to basic economics. What's worth more? A prestigious company with a solid bottom line and no debt? Or a prestigious company with a solid b"....
Sale Scrambles Sox Stadium-Seeking SOURCE: Field of Schemes news Last week's bombshell announcement by Boston Red Sox president John Harrington that he was putting the Yawkey Trust's majority share of the club up for sale threw the long-running Fenway Park saga into further confusion. Speculation immediately began as to what the impending sale would mean for the team's $665 million stadium plans, even as Harrington first said he would wait until a new owner was in place before moving ahead with the stadium, then fli.....
Sox sale may hike construction costs, kill project Source: Scott Van Voorhis, Boston Herald, 10/13/00. A potentially lengthy delay of the new Fenway ballpark project as control of the Boston Red Sox changes hands could push the project's price sharply higher and further dim its chances of ever becoming a reality, sources say. Although the team says it will move full-speed ahead on the ballpark project during the sale of the team, business community sources say it is highly unlikely that any stadium financing deal will be inked until>....
Bankers warned Sox on funding SUBTITLE: FleetBoston cautioned ballpark financing could fall tens of millions short Source: Meg Vaillancourt, Boston Globe, 10/11/2000 "Two weeks before Boston Red Sox chief John Harrington announced he was selling the controlling interest in the team, the Sox's bankers warned that crucial private financing to build a new ballpark could fall short by tens of millions of dollars. "Worried that Fleet's analysis would undermine interest in their team from potential bidders, Re>....
Sox Financing Woes Continue Boston Herald, 10/5/00: "While Sox management has insisted the team's new ballpark is still on track to open in 2004, sources close to the team have cast doubt on whether such an aggressive schedule is still possible as the team struggles to line up financing for its plans." ....
New site will stall Sox plans "The Boston Red Sox can all but scrap plans to build a giant ballpark in the next few years if forced to find a new site outside the city, observers say. "As the Herald reported two weeks ago, some sources close to the team are urging Sox management to consider alternatives to plans for a costly $352 million ballpark a few blocks away from the current Fenway Park. "The team's bankers have questioned whether the current ballpark proposal will produce enough of a return given the ris0....
Sox Financing Fiasco! "FleetBoston Financial Corp. executives are preparing to deliver a preliminary report showing that the team's current array of ballpark financing scenarios fails to produce a big enough profit margin for the Sox, sources close to the deal say." Boston Herald, 9/14. ....
Mike Ross: No Fenway flip-flop "I would like to voice my deepest concern about the unfounded report regarding my opinion on the current Fenway Park proposal ("Pols and politics," 9/10/00). Had I been asked about any changes of opinion, I would have reiterated my unequivocal opposition to the current plan. "I continue to stand in support of Fenway communty members who have serious concerns with the issues of public land taking and the use of public dollars for the building of this stadium." Michael P. Ross
Sox can't foot the bill "Nearly six weeks after state lawmakers passed a last-minute Fenway Park bill, the Boston Red Sox are still struggling to find a way to pay for their portion of the project and are considering major design changes to slash the cost of the facility." "Red Sox eye ways to cut project costs Design changes pondered amid financing struggles," By Meg Vaillancourt, Globe Staff, 9/12/2000 [CASS NOTE: Among the "design changes" is eliminating the slurr>....
Art of the Steal [The latest in an excellent series on Fenway by John Brattain of SportsTalk.com] "A while back, I did an interview with the co-author of 'Field of Schemes' -- Neil deMause. [His book] has a section called: 'The Art of the Steal'... on the 'modus operandi' of politicians and owners in securing public funds for new stadiums. Let's see if the New Fenway Park project has used the tactics cited in the book...." ....
Not In the Public Interest Source:Boston Baseball, Sept. 2000, p. 13. "The recent passage of the [Red Sox stadium] bill by the Massachusetts Legislature does not mean the new park is a done deal. Opponents of the project attacked the plan on several points during the month of August. "The most serious challenge to the new park may hinge on whether the courts agree that building a new ballpark in [the Fenway neighborhood] is truly in the public interest. "If the courts decide that allowing the govern ....
MA Voters Oppose New Sox Stadium A Boston Herald poll, conducted Aug. 29-31, and reported on 9/2/00, found that “61 percent of voters surveyed said they oppose the [Red Sox] $313 million public financing package to build a new stadium, while just one-third supported it. State lawmakers have approved the plan, but it still faces opposition from Boston elected officials." ....