With city funding of a new Charlotte Knights (Class AAA; International League) ballpark assured, the team has one more huge hurdle: finalizing a financing plan before the end of the month. That’s quite a deadline, but one that team VP Dan Rajkowski has been preparing for since Mecklenburg County first approved its funding contribution to […]
Tag Archives | financing
Third try’s the charm: petition opposing Wilmington ballpark funding succeeds
It took longer than anticipated, but opponents of public funding of a new ballpark in Wilmington (N.C.) finally turned in enough signatures to force a referendum or adoption. The measure would bar the city from spending any money on a new sports facility, a move designed to prevent any public funding of a new ballpark […]
Majority of Charlotte council members supports Knights ballpark
A majority of Charlotte City Council members now support a proposed Charlotte Knights (Class AAA; International League) ballpark plan, with a vote scheduled for June 11. Seven of the 11 council members expressed support for a new funding plan that capped the city’s contribution at $7.25 million, all coming from tourism funds. A plan to […]
Mayor slams Wilmington ballpark financing proposal
Wilmington (N.C.) Mayor Bill Saffo has come out against the current financing proposal for a new ballpark, saying the proponents don’t have enough “skin in the game.” In an interview with a local conservative talk-radio host, Saffo blasted the plan: “Pardon the pun here; we’re putting all of our skin into the game and they […]
Charlotte outlines ballpark funding plan
A Charlotte (N.C.) City Council committee will debate today a proposal to help fund a new Charlotte Knights (Class AAA; International League) Uptown ballpark, contingent on the team arranging private financing. The plan, to be discussed today by the council’s economic development committee, calls for $9 million to be paid to the team after 2015, with half […]
Economics of new Charlotte ballpark iffy: Mayor
Mayor Anthony Foxx threw some cold water on city funding of a new Charlotte Knights (Class AAA; International League) ballpark, saying any contribution to the project would be a hard sell. UNC-Charlotte professor John Connaughton told the Charlotte City Council two weeks ago that a new uptown ballpark would create 490 jobs annually (along with […]
Poll: Wilmington residents overwhelmingly oppose public financing of new ballpark
A poll of 300 registered voters in Wilmington, N.C., indicated broad opposition to city financing of a new ballpark for an Atlanta Braves farm team — but don’t take it too seriously just yet. The proposal calls for a $40-million waterfront ballpark in downtown Wilmington, as part of a larger development. A High Class A […]
Proposed Wilmington lease: Mandalay will pay 12 percent of debt service
In first discussions about a lease for a new Wilmington (N.C.) ballpark, Mayor Bill Saffo has floated the idea that Mandalay Baseball Properties would pay 12 percent of the overall debt service associated with the Class A facility. Wilmington has entered into exclusive negotiations with Mandalay and the Atlanta Braves over the finances of the […]
Why aren’t more MiLB teams changing hands?
Despite a healthy number of Minor League Baseball teams on the market, we’re not seeing many franchise sales these days. Why are things moving so slowly? We asked around — to owners, potential owners and brokers — to see why potentially attractive franchises openly and discreetly on the market were still for sale. Some of […]
Ottawa baseball bid losing steam?
The schedule for a city-designed bidding process for Ottawa Stadium is reportedly slipping, as the push to bring an Eastern League club to the Canadian capital may be slowing down even further. We noted last month that a prime topic of chatter at the Winter Meetings was a lack of progress in bringing a Double-A […]
Clark County reverses course; will exclusively negotiate with Bears
Upon further review, the three-person Clark County (Wash.) Board of Commissioners will exclusively negotiate the terms of a new ballpark with the Yakima Bears (short season; Northwest League) ownership, Short Season LLC. The decision was split — two commissioners for, one commissioner against — and it’s pretty clear the commissioner against, Tom Mielke, will be […]
Development and ballparks: today’s good and bad news
A development expected to help pay off debt on Camelback Ranch-Glendale is going into foreclosure as the developers enters bankruptcy, while the St. Louis Cardinals are finally ready to go ahead with the long-awaited Ballpark Village. Two tales of the sometimes awkward marriage between ballpark financing and development. First, the good news. The St. Louis […]
No economic impact for ballparks? Tell that to Giants fans
Want to argue that ballparks make no economic impact in a community? The area around AT&T Park, once a wasteland, is now a hopping, healthy area, in large part because of the impact of the home of the San Francisco Giants. And with the World Series starting there Wednesday, the impact — both financially and […]