The St. Louis board of aldermen (truth in advertising note: not actually all men) held a public hearing on the proposed new Rams stadium on Saturday, and held it outdoors near the proposed stadium site, because it was a nice day and a good excuse for a gimmick. Also, alderman Steve Conway felt, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, that “the best way for everyone to grasp the scope of the project is by having the meeting where the stadium would be built.”
Anyway, what’d the public have to say?
The majority of city residents who spoke called for a public vote. Many, like Andrew Arkill, also questioned whether a stadium was the best use of tax dollars.
“This is about the financial impact of the residents of the city of St. Louis, who all of you are elected to represent,” said Arkill. “I don’t hate sports. I don’t hate football. I don’t hate the Rams. I don’t even hate the idea of building new stadiums. What I am concerned about is the public financing of these stadiums, especially when the financing package doesn’t offer an attractive return on investment.”
And:
“You’ve got a stadium area where people clearly said if they are going to put more money into stadiums, we need to vote on it,” said Michael Bird who lives in Dogtown. “We need democracy. And here you go. You’ve got the stadium (coming) across the highway to this area right here. (It’s) against the will of the people. It’s disdainful.”
There were also locals with “Keep the Rams in St. Louis” signs, but from the sound of things the pro-“hold a public vote on this already” sentiment was strong — which shouldn’t be surprising, as that’s also been the sentiment when voters have actually been asked to vote on whether to hold a vote. The St. Louis board of aldermen is going to vote on whether to hold a public vote, but the mayor says they shouldn’t, because people might not vote the right way.
Okay, I think everyone has grasped the scope of the project now.
The Rams already got a stadium built for them, its outrageous they are asking tax money for another one.
Tom- The Rams aren’t asking for a new stadium to be built for them. If it was up to them they’d be building their 100% privately financed stadium in Inglewood.
Well, aside from the part where Kroenke demanded $700 million in stadium upgrades in order not to break his lease:
https://www.fieldofschemes.com/2012/05/15/3441/rams-seeking-700m-in-upgrades-to-17-year-old-280m-dome/