The future of a proposed ballpark for the Omaha Royals in Sarpy County will hinge on available funding, according to the county officials spearheading the effort.
The future of a proposed ballpark for the Omaha Royals (Class AAA; Pacific Coast League) in Sarpy County will hinge on available funding, according to Sarpy County Attorney Lee Polikov, the county official spearheading the effort.
Sarpy County and the Royals are entering an exclusive negotiating period — a move that usually results in a new ballpark. And while the O-Royals are willing to kick in some funds toward the new ballpark, the county is looking at what sources of revenue — aside from property-tax revenues, of course — are available.
It sounds from this interview there are two prime sources. There’s always use of tax-increment financing, or sales-tax recaputure in the local parlance. But how that’s implemented is up for debate. The preferred method, perhaps, is to work with a developer on a large project where 20 acres is set aside for the ballpark, and sales taxes generated by the project be used partially for the ballpark construction.
The Royals face a dealine of sorts: Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium, the team’s current home, is slated to be torn down in the 2010-2011 timeline, after the College World Series moves to a new downtown ballpark.