City Commissioner Michelle Spence-Jones, a swing vote on the decision to fund a new Florida Marlins ballpark, now indicates her tentative support for the plan.
City Commissioner Michelle Spence-Jones, a swing vote on the decision to fund a new Florida Marlins ballpark, now indicates her tentative support for the plan.
Spence-Jones, who was on maternity leave in February when the city commission deadlocked 2-2 on a ballpark proposal, had held off on supporting the current ballpark proposal unless county redevelopment money was sent to her district. After meetings with county officials yesterday, Spence-Jones indicated her concerns were being addressed. And although she didn’t come right out and say she would be supporting the ballpark proposal, it’s not a huge leap there.
Still, there are some formidable obstacles before that first shovel is overturned. First, city commissioner Marc Sarnoff is sure to press his demands the Marlins share naming-rights revenues, agree to share profits should the team be sold in the next seven years, and cover cost overages on a new $94-million parking ramp. We’ve been told by insiders reaching a deal on the first two items may not be as difficult as some in the city believe, with the Marlins saying they could be flexible on those terms.
And if the ballpark proposal is passed by the city — whose ultimate exposure on the $606-million project is only $13 million, making it by far the lesser partner — it still faces a considerable hurdle in gaining Miami-Dade County acceptance. While county officials seem more willing to live up to the terms of the original deal — though they wouldn’t turn down naming-rights and sale revenues — the bigger issue for them is arranging financing for the project, which could approach $1.9 billion by the time all is said and done. Financing large projects is extremely difficult today, and the revenue streams peggs to pay back bonds — namely, the county’s tourism tax — has been yielding less than budgeted in recent months and could go down even more if the current recession lingers. If that happens, the project will need to be scaled back, or voters will be asked to explicitly back the bonds with general-fund revenues, something some county commissioners may find distasteful. So while Spence-Jones’ tentative support is good news for the Fish, there’s a long ways to go before a new ballpark opens.
Meanwhile, Rep. Richard L. Steinberg of Miami Beach has introduced an amendment in the Florida Legislature giving voters final say on the ballpark plan.
RELATED STORIES: Vote on new Marlins ballpark delayed again; Miami-Dade County withdraws from Marlins ballpark negotiations, putting entire deal in doubt; With A’s and Fish having ballpark problems, ‘C’ word comes up; New lawsuit filed against Fish ballpark; hearing dates changed again; Always read the fine print, as Marlins fans are discovering; Marlins ballpark vote delayed until March 12; Total borrowing cost of new Marlins ballpark: $1.9 billion
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