A new poll of 584 registered voters in Tampa finds little support for using taxpayer money for a new stadium for the Tampa Bay Rays. The poll, from StPetePolls.org and commissioned by St. Petersburg political blogger Peter Schorsch, asked whether taxpayer dollars should be used to help pay for a new Tampa Bay Rays baseball stadium in Tampa, 55.9 percent of respondents said no, 36.4 percent said yes and 7.8 percent were unsure.....more>
Don't let Mayor Bob fool you, remember Bush and the Rangers?
Financially, the Rangers deal was basically about real estate. By getting the city to build them a new stadium, Bush and his partners increased the team’s book value from $83 million to $138 million. This required convincing the city’s taxpayers that they would lose the team if they did not pay up for the stadium. To raise the $191 million it would cost to build the Ballpark at Arlington, residents were asked to add a half cent to what was already one of the nation’s highest sales tax rates. According to attorney Glenn Sodd, W.’s group helped egg along Arlington by leaking a story that Dallas was competing for the team and had offered to build them a stadium. “We found out that this was untrue..... more>
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