Ilitch Responds to John Oliver's Critique of Stadium Deal
I’m probably out of alignment with Oliver on our based political impressions and ideas regarding the role of government, but he’s spot on many of these kinds of issues. His piece on the pharmaceutical industry was on the money. This piece on stadiums, too, is a bulls-eye. I have long criticized the public funding of sports arenas. In the Dallas area, we saw the ballpark in Arlington (now the Globe Life Park) built in the early 90s for about $200 million. Bush (W) and the other owners of the team (ownership has changed since) convinced Arlington to apportion a half-cent tax to pay for 70% of the park, and then negotiated the team’s purchase of the $191 million park for $60 million. Imminent Domain was used by the city to obtain the land on which the stadium was built. Studies conducted since the opening of the stadium have found little to no direct economic benefit for the city. Construction jobs are temporary and leave when construction is complete. Sales tax revenues have not grown. A case is sometimes made for the growth of the city, but truly, the only measurable economic impact is ticket sales, which peak and valley with the success and failure of the team … and benefit the team, not the city.
We also have AT&T Stadium in Arlington … home of the Cowboys, and commonly referred to as "Jerry World" or the "Death Star." The original estimated construction cost of $650 million was dwarfed by the actual costs, which exceeded $1.15 billion. Through sales and tourism tax increases, the city of Arlington funded more than $350 million of the costs, and the NFL gave Jerry a $150 million loan. The stadium has been great for Jerry, as it is not the home for the Cotton Bowl, has already hosted one Super Bowl and the NCAA Final Four, hosted the first NCAA championship football game in the College Playoff Era, and is a high profile tour stop for touring performers. It too, has produced no measurable sales tax revenue increases for Arlington. It has created no additional permanent jobs in excess of those cannibalized by closing Texas Stadium in Irving. It is a cash cow for the team, who collects $17-$19 million a year for the naming rights. The Cowboys are one of the most valuable sports franchises in the world, valued at approximately $2.4 billion and responsible for generating an estimated 25% of ALLNFL merchandising revenues.
@g_spot:
The whole reason they wanted the event there in the first place was because of all the painting done there by the "children." And Dr. Irving-news flash-Cabbagetown residents dont give a damn what out of towners from the suburbs playing gritty urban tourist think of them. Also as pointed out by janarchy, it is cute how this event is a "non profit."
Watching that entire neighborhood of artists and free thinkers flip out over someone renting a public tunnel for one night was awesome!
Remember all the hysteria about Cabbagetown being "cut off" from the rest of the city and how many folks were gonna die because an ambulance couldn’t get to them? And the part about inconveniencing folks so much that they had to drive an extra couple blocks to get home? The best part were the whitewashers who painted over all the art so no one could see it! That was great!!
@MietAtl: Don’t forget the beards. The big bushy beards—the "mullet" of this generation. All the hipsters and artists in Cabbagetown have them, even the women. :)
Can This Tiny House Address the Los Angeles Housing Crisis?
"Irving! I hear you’re going out to California to live with your son! Such a good boy! You must be so proud of him, a big Silicon Valley millionaire!"
"Meh! He lives in an expensive house, drives a new mercedes, everything I worked two jobs and did without so he could go to Yale, and what does he do for me? He puts me in a tent in his back yard! Of course they’re not calling it a tent—-it’s some high tech thing, but I tell you Frankie, it’s a goddamn tent!"
All kidding aside, do folks from Cabbagetown seriously believe that they creative a POSITIVE impression on folks in the rest of the city from last year’s saga?
Despite their motives or intentions, the neighborhood came away looking petty, mean-spirited and vengeful. Not a good image to "paint".
@Janarchy: "But hey, SneakyPete, Hiroki, Irving, and G_Spot can put down another $40 to hang out with the other wall-eyed suburbanites, jack a public right of way, and inconvenience an entire neighborhood they’re "urban vacationing…" Ah, and how much do I want to bet that YOU grew up in the suburbs, then moved and displaced the originally urban residents of your intown neighborhood by effectively gentrifying it. Most of the Cabbagetown residents who screamed and yelled about this did just that.
@Chris Hare: The event was a total bust, and I’m surprised the douche promoter would try it again. I walked past while it was ongoing and couldn’t believe someone paid money to stand in a grey tunnel and listen to a marching band (yes, a sultry marching band). I guess he still made money from those few dozen people though, which is what happens when you get out of paying for a permit because you’re a non-profit that doesn’t donate any money.
But hey, SneakyPete, Hiroki, Irving, and G_Spot can put down another $40 to hang out with the other wall-eyed suburbanites, jack a public right of way, and inconvenience an entire neighborhood they’re "urban vacationing" in. Your lame ass "so-and-so was here" tags and fratboy solo cups will be gone by the next morning, but you’ll have your sexy, duck-lipped twitter photos forever.