Hey Glenn Straub. I WANT to watch baseball downtown,. I WANT to TAKE the Metromover to games,
But I wish you would just shut up.
Straub penned a letter to the public (which you can find on the jump) defending his idea for a downtown stadium. But we've moved too far with the Little Havana stadium and I for one am sick of watching the Marlins give away every decent player who ever swung a bat for them.
With the city vote yesterday voting to expand the Southeast Overtown Park West District, we have removed another stumbling block.
So Glenn, I applaud your inventiveness. But now sit down!
Proposal for Privately Funded Miami Ballpark
March 12, 2009
To Community Leaders:
I have been asked to explain in
further detail my proposal to build a new ballpark using the old Miami Arena
property.
It has been reported in the
news media that this site is not acceptable to the Marlins. Yet it was Major
League Baseball that first sought to build the new stadium downtown spending
hundreds of thousands of dollars optioning property in the area.
They are well aware of the advantages to the down town location for the team and fans such
as existing parking, the existing public transit system and proximity of the
facility to the potential fan base -- all features that do not exist at the
Orange Bowl.
It was not until the funding
of the ballpark in downtown came up short that the Orange Bowl site was
considered and only then because it had $50,000,000 in funding for renovations
that could be used toward the new stadium that caused the change in location.
It now seems everyone has
amnesia about what happened a few years ago.
As a reminder I offer
excerpts from various news articles:
Finally,
A Great Plan For The Marlins Stadium
November 22, 2006
Dade leaders pitch 'urban' ballpark for Marlins
The latest
proposed site for a new Florida Marlins baseball park has drawn praise from
some and skepticism from others but no pledges of new money to fund
construction.
BY MATTHEW I. PINZUR
Some of Miami-Dade's top
officials are optimistic that a new downtown stadium site could plant the
Florida Marlins in the heart of the city, but financing its construction
remains a major hurdle.
Just north of the Stephen P.
Clark Center, the nine-acre site would give baseball fans easy access to
existing parking lots, commuter rail and Interstate 95. It is also just blocks
from two other top entertainment destinations -- the American Airlines Arena and
the Carnival Center for the Performing Arts.
"We really think this can work,"
said County Manager George Burgess.
JUST ONE OPTION
A team spokesman declined to
discuss the new site.
"We continue to look at all our
options in South Florida, and this is one of them," said P.J. Loyello, senior
vice president for communications and broadcasting.
County government has offered
previously to spend $120 million for a new stadium and the team was willing to
spend about $210 million. That was still far short of the estimated cost,
projected at $420 million earlier this year and likely growing as construction
costs increase.
Diaz, however, hinted that his
government may be willing to help, an offer that many thought had died late
last year. He said he has "always loved the idea of an urban site." At the new
downtown site, all the land is government owned -- mostly by the county, with a
small piece held by the city. Both Metromover and Metrorail stop at the Clark
Center, connecting the site to neighborhoods from Dadeland to Hialeah. And
Burgess said the ballpark would be served by the numerous parking lots,
restaurants and stores that otherwise empty out when the business day ends.
"It's an urban ballpark, which
has generally been successful from Major League Baseball's perspective,"
Burgess said.
In another
article the following was reported:
Downtown
Miami Marlins?
> Posted by Sarah Talalay at
11:30 PM
While a decision on the location of a new stadium for the
Marlins is far from being made, don't be surprised if the newest idea - a downtown site just north of the Miami-Dade
County government center - ends up the preferred choice.
The location is publicly owned by Miami-Dade County and the city
of Miami, which would significantly reduce the cost of a ballpark; is adjacent
to Metrorail and Metromover and not far from I-95; and there is ample parking
nearby.
Several county
commissioners were open to the idea of the site Tuesday, but said they want to
ensure the county finds a good location for the Children's Courthouse for
juvenile and dependency cases that is slated for the area, and that taxpayers
don't end up being unduly burdened with the cost of a ballpark.
"I love it. It's got great potential," said County Commissioner
Carlos Gimenez, who as the the former Miami city manager is quite familiar with
the ballpark project. Gimenez loves that the property is publicly owned and so
close to Metrorail. "I think it can work ... It was right under our nose all
along."
It appears that Major League Baseball's interest in an area
south of Miami Arena may have spurred county officials to begin exploring
whether other downtown spots might be viable.
While Commissioner Katy Sorenson continues to oppose public
funding of sports venues and Commissioner Natacha Seijas said she has questions
about the new site, other commissioners, including Sally Heyman, Bruno
Barreiro, Javier Souto and Rebeca Sosa, said they were open to the idea, if a
suitable location can be found for the Children's Courthouse.
"I think it's a good location as long as we can take care of the
children's court," Barreiro said.
It's too early, county and city officials say, to talk financial
terms for the site, but it's pretty clear the county, city, and Marlins will
all have to participate and all of them hope the state will finally contribute.
Miami Mayor Manny Diaz supports bringing a stadium to downtown to help round
out what he says is becoming an increasingly dynamic area with condos,
restaurants and the recently opened Carnival Center for the Performing Arts.
These are just a few of the
many news articles demonstrating the widespread interest in a downtown
ballpark. I chose just a few to make my point. I think this puts to rest the
recent comments from the parties that the downtown site was never considered
favorably. To the contrary, it was said to be the best site for all the reasons
stated above.
Two years ago I made the
offer to discuss building the ballpark downtown with our family doing the
financing. But by this time a deal had already been struck between the City,
county and the Marlins. The team had an offer it could not refuse no matter
where the stadium was built.
At that time our country was
not in the financial crisis we are experiencing today. No one seemed to care then
how much debt we incurred and how or if it could ever be repaid. It seemed like
everyone would build first and figure out how to pay for it later. This philosophy
has not served us well.
I do not want anyone to think
that I would offer the team the same terms as the city and county. These terms
in today's world make no financial sense. I may as well hand to them a check for two billion dollars and
call it a gift as make the deal that has been agreed to. I will not do that and
the taxpayers of Miami-Dade should not be asked to either.
I find it impossible to
believe that this has gone this far without someone demanding to know if the
bonds funding this project can actually be sold. I have not seen a firm
commitment from any reputable financial firm guaranteeing that they can place
the bonds at a certain interest rate that the city and county can afford. To
the contrary, I have seen plenty of press how the bonds cannot be re paid.
Before this project goes any
further, someone should demand a firm
commitment to purchase the bonds be presented for review. Until this is done
not a single dime should be spent on this project.
I am proposing an arm's length
transaction for a lease between us and Major League Baseball, the city and the
county. The lease I propose is computed on a six per cent interest rate with
all expenses being paid by the tenant.
The lease payments cannot be
determined until we know what accessories will be required (such as retractable
roof, number of executive suites and number of restaurants).
I have offered to take the
Orange Bowl property as partial payment of the lease cost, if that is of
interest to the city and county.
No bonds would have to be
sold to pay for this project. It would be funded totally through private
financing.
I would be making available the
land free and clear and putting up half of the cost in cash. The balance would
be financed by conventional financing using the lease as collateral.
I would anticipate my overall
cost to be substantially below that of the Orange Bowl site because there would
be no need for the parking garages and other infrastructure such as people
movers .
I also anticipate being able
to deliver the facility to the team much earlier due to the elimination of
these unnecessary features.
If the team wanted to reduce
the lease payments, they could buy down the lease with an upfront payment. This
is how leases are done everyday in business. I am also willing to provide that
the team, the city or county would have the right to purchase the stadium from
me for what I have invested, if at any time in the future, that makes sense to
the parties.
I would require in the lease provisions
detailing what would happen if the team was sold or left town. Plain and simple
fact is this would be a bone fide business deal in no way resembling the
proposal currently on the table at the Orange Bowl site.
Dave Sampson the Marlins
President said Tuesday of this week that I had not contacted him with a
proposal. That is a correct statement. The reason I did not contact him is that
this offer is a backup to the Orange Bowl site. I did not contact Mr. Sampson because
he had made clear no other site would be considered while the Orange Bowl site
was on the table.
Once the Orange Bowl site has
been eliminated I would hope he would want to take the time to hear more
details.
I anticipate having a draft
of a rendering and a site plan by Tuesday of next week.
If the parties are agreeable,
the next step would be the development of a detailed term sheet
Glenn
Straub