Time to open up the ol’ Instapaper and see what this week’s leftover news items hold — seriously? Okay, better get started:
- So much is going on in Kansas City in advance of Jackson County’s April 2 voting deadline for a referendum to extend the county 0.375% sales tax surcharge and give the resulting $500 million or so to the Royals and Chiefs for stadium upgrades that for the first time I’m having to break out a second level of bullets:
- Chiefs president Mark Donovan went on TV and was asked if the teams would leave town if the tax hike is rejected, and replied, “for us the Chiefs; we would just have to look at all our options” and “I think they would have to include leaving Kansas City. But our goal here is, we want to stay here.” It’d be a shame if someone was to set fire to the football players, wouldn’t it, Luigi?
- The two teams have doubled their campaign spending to $1 million each, with more presumably expected.
- A coalition of low-income workers and residents of the Crossroads district where the Royals owner John Sherman wants to build a stadium with around $1 billion in public money says they’re giving Sherman until Tuesday to provide a community benefits agreement for the neighborhood or else they’ll advocate for a “no” vote.
- And Chiefs mascot KC Wolf and Royals mascot Sluggerrr handed out “Vote Yes” stickers outside the city’s arena yesterday, and I had to dig through the Fox4KC video for photographic evidence but here it is:
- Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s own internal analysis of the proposed Washington Capitals and Wizards arena deal for Alexandria finds that in order for it to raise enough money to generate the taxes needed to pay its construction costs, fans would have to pay $75 for parking, the arena would have to host 53 more events each year than the teams do now in D.C., and the project’s hotel would have to be able to charge $731 a night. Youngkin says he’s “working on” reviving the arena plan and that the problem is “the Senate didn’t do the work,” he really hasn’t learned his lesson about how to win friends and influence people, has he?
- Three members of the St. Petersburg City Council remain opposed to Tampa Bay Rays owner Stuart Sternberg’s maybe–$1.5 billion stadium subsidy deal, and it would only take four to vote it down. The nearest anyone else is coming to opposing it is Gina Driscoll’s “undecided but optimistic,” though, so don’t hold your breath, but there’s at least a non-zero chance this thing might not sail through without more haggling.
- Two weeks after Wisconsin assembly speaker Robin Vos pushed through $471 million in stadium renovation subsidies for the Milwaukee Brewers, five team executives each donated the maximum $1,000 to Vos’s reelection campaign. Probably just a coincidence, though, as they doubtless give money all the time to all sorts of — oh, this was their first donations to any candidate in the state ever? Well then.
- Why don’t pro women’s teams get as much public subsidies as pro men’s teams? That’s the question being asked by Karen Leetzow, president of the Chicago Red Stars NWSL soccer team, which is owned by Laura Ricketts, who co-owns the Cubs with her brothers Tom, Pete, and Todd, something USA Today utterly fails to mention in its article.
- The Seidman Research Institute at Arizona State University (which, despite its name, is actually a business consultant) reports that spring training games in Arizona generated more than $710 million for the local economy in 2023, enough to pay Shohei Ohtani’s entire 10-year contract, and this breaks so many rules about not comparing economic activity with actual tax receipts and not comparing present and future value that I almost can’t muster the energy to point out that previous studies show that the actual number is closer to zero.
Spring training definitely has an impact in Arizona. It took me 40 minutes to get home yesterday (a trip that should take 15-20 minutes), thanks to the economic impact flowing out of the parking lots and onto the local streets from the baseball stadia. I’m looking forward to all that economic bounty getting out of town at the end of the month.
I know a number of people who winter in Phoenix metro and surrounds “because of spring training”. They like baseball.
What I don’t know is whether they would go anyway for the weather and being able to play golf in Jan/Feb. I suspect they would as they like the sun, warm weather and golf. However, it can’t be proven either way.
On the other hand, I was considering moving to Vegas before both Davis and Fisher announced they were moving there. Now I am not considering moving (including my business) there.
Although it is hard to quantify, I am not sure if I am more or less likely to visit Vegas now than I was before professional sports moved in. I suspect less, as the influx of football, hockey, baseball* and now F1 is likely to drive the price up. This makes the things I actually like to do in winter more expensive and provides no measurable benefit to my enjoyment that would offset that increase in costs.
Who is calculating the economic impact of all this and how does it get factored in to the net impact of professional sports on the Metro Las Vegas area?
My reasoning exactly. I would never go to Vegas to see the Raiders, and certainly not the A’s, because the Raiders especially (and NFL more generally) were posting a continually more extractive cost to experience a severely disappointing product. The disappointment hasn’t abated, and the financial extraction has only become that much greater due to the nature of their new surroundings. Obviously Fisher and Manfred want to follow in those footsteps, but they’re stumbling like a Fremont Street drunk so far. And they won’t be getting me back as a customer.
As for Arizona and it’s eternally unpopular hockey team, getting the Arizona State Land Department to place the land the Coyotes are dreaming they can build an arena on up for auction is a small first step. A nearby, far less valuable 80 acre parcel was auctioned 2 months ago and attracted 164 bids. The winning $32.3 million bid from Lennar Homes was more than double the $15.7 million starting bid. I can think of quite a few developers and speculators that will be very interested in the Northwest corner of Scottsdale Road and Loop 101. Alex Meruelo may have a hard time winning the auction, let alone getting zoning approval from Phoenix, financing $3 billion + construction costs for his arena and entertainment district and getting an arena open before 2030.
68 million isn’t a lucky number when it comes to Arizona State Trust Land auctions. 4 years ago a parcel of State Trust Land in Northwest Pinal County went up for auction, starting at $68 million. 118 bids later DR Horton placed the winning $245 million bid. Getting the Arizona State Land Department to schedule an auction was the first, and probably the easiest hurdle the Coyotes will face in getting a new arena.
Ominous news coming from Hockey Night In Canada …
https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/article/relocation-on-table-if-coyotes-dont-win-land-auction/
Chucky,
Not only is there a real possibility or probability the Coyotes will lose the auction, but infrastructure costs to satisfy the Arizona State Land Department and City of Phoenix will probably be very substantial. The auction details for the parcel the Coyotes are looking at hasn’t been released yet, but here is an excerpt from a similar parcel slated for auction on May 29th. Notice the warning that infrastructure costs are expected to exceed one billion dollars.
(B) The Successful Bidder will be required to enter into, as the “CP Holder”, the
PARTICIPATION AND INFRASTRUCTURE CONTRACT REGARDING ASLD SALE NO.
53-123709 (the “Participation Contract”), a copy of which is located in ASLD File No. 53-123709
for this sale. The Participation Contract requires the CP Holder to, in addition to other obligations
as stated therein, zone and otherwise entitle other property retained by ASLD adjacent to the
Subject Property (the “Retained Property”, as described in the Participation Contract), construct
certain improvements for the benefit of both the Subject Property and the Retained Property, and
pay ASLD “Participation Payments” (as defined in the Participation Contract) in accordance with
the terms of the Participation Contract. The Participation Contract requires that CP Holder achieve
certain sales activity within prescribed time periods (each a “Sales Activity Milestone”, as further
described in the Participation Contract), expend certain amounts on Project Costs within prescribed
time periods (each a “Project Cost Milestone, as further described in the Participation Contract),
and design, plan, permit and construct Phase I Backbone Infrastructire within certain prescribed
time periods (the “Phase I Infrastructure Milestones”, as further described in the Participation
Contract). An Infrastructure Assessment Report detailing the anticipated cost to design and
constmct the infrastructure necessary to develop the Subject Property, currently estimated to
exceed ONE BILLION DOLLARS ($1,000,000,000.00), is available in ASLD file No. 53-
123709.
Accordingly, ASLD has an interest in ensuring that all bidders have the experience and
financial capability to completely perform all the obligations of the CP Holder under the
Participation Contract. All prospective bidders shall complete a Bidder Qualification
Questionnaire on the form provided by ASLD, which must be timely submitted to ASLD and shall
provide detailed information regarding the prospective bidder’s experience and qualifications
(“Bidder Qualifications”). Information required from the prospective bidder will mclude, but is
not limited to, the following:
The composition, principals, and legal form of the bidder entity. Key individuals of the
bidder entity must have at least 10 years of demonstrated experience in the real estate
development business in the United States and must identify the relevant qualifications
and experience of such individuals, including relevant experience prior to becoming
associated with the bidder entity. Such individuals collectively must have demonstrated
experience as principals and/or senior project personnel of businesses/entities with
successful planning, entitling, funding of infrastructure, and improving land with large-
scale infrastructure for industrial, office, retail, hotel, or multi-family uses in the United
States. Such experience must collectively demonstrate experience in obtaining
infrastructure funding of at least $100,000,000 in procurement and installation cost
for such items as water, wastewater, roadway, drainage, gas and electric utilities, and
related land improvements in single-phase or multi-phase development projects in the
United States. One or more of such individuals, as principals and/or senior project
personnel of businesses/entities, must have demonstrated experience in planning,
marketing, financing, and developing industrial, office, retail, hotel, or multi-family uses
at cost or value of at least $400,000,000 in an individual (i) single-building or (ii) multi-
phase building development project in the United States.
Beautiful. ‘Not giving equal subsidies to arenas/stadiums for women’s professional leagues is sexist, actually’. Right out of the ‘I left the climate change movement because it was too male-dominated’ Culture War Astroturfing playbook. I’m sure Karen Leetzow is literally neurodivergent and a minor too.
And USA Today is expert at cloaking the source, a symptom exhibited by major newspapers in Murica.
That picture of the KC mascots lobbying voters is pretty funny, but nothing will ever beat the San Diego Chargers mascot testifying at a City Council hearing: https://tinyurl.com/w2k7sxct
Boltman was the unofficial mascot for the team.
The repeated references here to Youngkin not kissing up to the Democrats to get the arena deal lead me to the inevitable conclusion that all it’s going to take is the next governor being a Democrat for that to get the deal done. Lucas and the Democratic leadership in the state House and Senate will want to give that person a win, and what’s a bigger win than bringing the first ever sports teams to the Commonwealth?
The Virginia Squires say Hi!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_Squires
The next VA Governor won’t be elected on promises of a stadium. They will come into office with an agenda and an incredibly short time frame to get it done before their lame-duck status kicks in. A popular-ish Democrat would be eyeing Kaine or Warner’s senate seat and probably wouldn’t want to piss people off with a stadium deal as they’re revving up for a senate primary.
Structurally one of those northern counties need to bite the bullet and go into it without Richmond backing them up. Once there’s shovels in the ground maybe they can get some infrastructure funding, but it’s unlikely to me that the current composition of the assembly would ever pass a massive stadium subsidy.
“…Youngkin not kissing up to the Democrats…”
Probably more accurately described as “continuing to be deathly afraid of how ‘the base’ might react to working with ‘the enemy’ to get a deal done”.
That area where the Royals want to move, is that where the old newspaper building is or is that somewhere else? Thanks!
Yes, the area around the old KC Star printing plant.
I really want somebody to threaten to move to Albuquerque just for the Simpsons memes.
IIRC, around 20 years ago Chiefs reps had “tour of the city” types of meetings with Albuquerque pols. Nothing new under the sun.
Off topic a bit, Neil, but over the past three years Diamond Baseball Holdings have acquired ten (haven’t checked in a few days… could be more by now…) triple A teams across a couple of leagues.
They now own 40% of the International league and, I would assume, are looking to grow the 20% of the PCL that they presently own (including everyone’s third favourite MiLB team, the Isotopes…).
Do you think there’s a broader play at work here or is it just accumulating assets without a central plan?
(Yes, the Bananas and the Mud Hens. The Lug Nuts get honourable mention but aren’t in the top three…)
I’ve discussed this with a couple of other baseball writers and none of us have been able to figure out what Diamond’s plan is. I should have a little more free time coming up, so maybe I’ll spend some time looking into it…
Thanks.
I should have added that, in addition to the AAA acquisitions, DBH has four or five lower tier clubs that are in either major or significant sized markets.
I guess the obvious conclusion is “just that”, but I’m not sure that is where they are heading either. It’s certainly interesting that one entity is acquiring so many high level MiLB clubs in significant markets.
It is not clear to me under the recent “reconfiguration” of the minor leagues whether they could make some kind of breakaway/split even if they wanted to.
Maybe it’s just to farm the artificial scarcity related subsidies that MLB has helped develop in the minors in this enlightened age?
If the vote doesn’t go their way, what are the chances that the Royals and Chiefs try the old Kansas City Shuffle and look for stadium sites on the other side of the state line?
A couple of organizations involved in CBA talks here in KC just dropped out and if nothing gets resolved as you said then they will openly campaign against it.
I think the Royals attempting to move to the Crossroads was a mistake as it took yes voters and now made them into no voters
Royals making dumb moves is never a shock though