May 04, 2006

Day of the undead Marlins bill

Just in time for Cinco de Mayo - maybe somebody got their Mexican holidays mixed up - Florida legislators unexpectedly exhumed the long-dead Marlins stadium bill yesterday, with the full state senate to vote on it today. If approved, the bill, which includes $2 million a year apiece in sales-tax kickbacks for both the Marlins and the Orlando Magic, would head for the state house, which is expected to support it - though we've said that before.

While the sales-tax subsidy would fill the $30 million funding gap that stood between the Marlins and their dream home last year at this time, a couple of new problems have emerged in the interim. First off, the gap is now $100 million. And secondly, it's not clear if the city of Miami is still committed to chip in towards what's now likely to be a $500 million stadium. (Not saying "I told you so," not saying it...) Which is where the Hialeah tax-increment financing plan comes in, with property taxes from new development funneled into paying off that city's share of stadium bonds.

This is officially a trend, by the way: With the Marlins, Oakland A's, Minnesota Vikings, and would-be Brooklyn Nets all floating "it's not just a sports facility, it's a housing/office/retail complex!" schemes, the throw-in-the-kitchen-sink strategy looks to be here to stay. And never mind that if new development is a moneymaker for cities, they could always just approve it without the money-losing sports component - not to mention that new buildings come with their own costs as well, which are hard to pay for when their property-tax payments are being used on a stadium.