If stadium vote passes, Dolphins to stay in Miami through at least 2043

[Spesh]

Who can predict what the new owner down the road will do? They would be inheriting a stadium in desperate need of renovations, empty seats on game day and a local area that gives public money to the basketball and baseball team, but not the NFL team. What the next owner might do is always going to be a major concern without a lease with the area.

Any new owner would see the benefits of keeping the team in a world famous location. If this was Buffalo, i could see that argument. This is Miami. The reason why the team isnt maximizing its profit is because the product they put on the field is lacking.

For some, 4 consecutive losing seasons is not a good thing. That is the reason why ticket sales are dropping. How our owner is completely confused by that is beyond me.

edit: Heres my questions: has Stephen Ross paid off the $200 million debt from our last set of renovations? And who will pay for the next set of renovations?

 

[uk_dolfan]

Any new owner would see the benefits of keeping the team in a world famous location. If this was Buffalo, i could see that argument. This is Miami. The reason why the team isnt maximizing its profit is because the product they put on the field is lacking.

For some, 4 consecutive losing seasons is not a good thing. That is the reason why ticket sales are dropping. How our owner is completely confused by that is beyond me.

Doesn't Miami currently have the lowest TV figures in the NFL? Not to mention our attendance figures, Miami is a great city but a nice beach will only keep the team for so long.

 

[Playmaker76]

If the Dolphins reimburse the city the $120 million as the article states, the deal is a no brainer. Can't ask for much more than that. The team essentially ends up paying the entire bill minus inflation and interest costs.

 

[dlockz]

I'd prefer to see no public money whatsoever, but the fact is that I flat out don't know what sort of financial structure Steve Ross is working with. It's my understanding that all of the public money would come from a 1% increase in the hotel bed tax (I don't think this would scare away even one tourist) and a sales tax rebate on merchandise sold inside the stadium. As a resident of Dade County, I don't have an issue with that deal at all.

What I'd like to see is what kind of financial benefits hosting Super Bowls and other big events brings to the county in terms of revenue. Miami has hosted a lot of Super Bowls over the years, so I can guarantee that someone in the county accounting office knows the numbers. I'd be interested to see them. I do think that drawing in more events -- and especially the Super Bowl -- would have to be worth more for Dade County than the revenue on sales tax from a stadium that may or may not continue hosting a professional football team.

The problem with financial benefits analysis reports from nfl and teams they always seem to do two things. Way over value the benefits and forget substitution principle which basically implies that people would spend money on other things in Miami. They want you to believe ridiculous numbers that most independent reports would devalue by at least 75 percent. That being said there is a benefit but not close to the benefit that the NFL and ownership would have u believe. I mean we set a record for visitors and money spent in area in a non super bowl year recently and this was 10 percent more than the previous year which encompassed a superbowl. The whole idea of a money making machine having taxpayers foot the bill while they make record profits is almost insulting, well it is insulting. I mean the heat havent paid one dime to play in their arena and they want to renew their lease big suprise lol

 

[Spesh]

Doesn't Miami currently have the lowest TV figures in the NFL? Not to mention our attendance figures, Miami is a great city but a nice beach will only keep the team for so long.

Again, attendance will be fine if we win. There is money to be made in Miami for any football team. The key is winning. People are tired of giving money to a loser.

 

[dlockz]

Doesn't Miami currently have the lowest TV figures in the NFL? Not to mention our attendance figures, Miami is a great city but a nice beach will only keep the team for so long.

ratings and attendance are down because we are a losing team. Attendence was midlevel in nfl just two years ago, and two more losing seasons have us at bottom, no big suprise not to mention lack of big names

 

[dlockz]

Kind of funny Robert Kraft privately financed a stadium in NE in 2002 for 350 million and now 10 years later that just is a renovation that of course the taxpayers have to foot a good portion of

 

[J. David Wannyheimer]

The problem with financial benefits analysis reports from nfl and teams they always seem to do two things.

That's why I would love to see what the county's analysts think here, the figures they are working with. What I do know is that the county DOES want the Super Bowl and events, so I have to assume that even if a Super Bowl isn't as lucrative as the NFL wants us to believe (and I guarantee that you're right and it's not), it's still viewed as a boon to the local economy and county coffers rather than a curse.

I've now seen that the Dolphins have pledged to pay the cost of any construction overruns and shortfalls in the projected revenue from the bed tax, as well as paying a penalty to the county if the stadium doesn't get four Super Bowls over 30 years. It'll be interesting to see if the county can get any other concessions out of the Dolphins before this goes to a vote.

I will probably vote in favor of this assuming that the information I've seen so far is correct.

In an ideal world, sports teams would 100% pay their own way, but I know that this isn't an ideal world and I do know that the Miami Dolphins have been one of the very, very few professional teams that has 100% paid their own way for forty odd years. We're not talking about Jeffrey "Scumbag" Loria screwing the county long and hard so that he can slash payroll here.

 

[dlockz]

That's why I would love to see what the county's analysts think here, the figures they are working with. What I do know is that the county DOES want the Super Bowl and events, so I have to assume that even if a Super Bowl isn't as lucrative as the NFL wants us to believe (and I guarantee that you're right and it's not), it's still viewed as a boon to the local economy and county coffers rather than a curse.

I will probably vote in favor of this assuming that the information I've seen so far is correct.

In an ideal world, sports teams would 100% pay their own way, but I know that this isn't an ideal world and I do know that the Miami Dolphins have been one of the very, very few professional teams that has 100% paid their own way for forty odd years. We're not talking about Jeffrey "Scumbag" Loria screwing the county long and hard so that he can slash payroll here.

Yea thats why taxpayers and politicians need to actually make educated choices and quit falling for the bs these sports leagues keep doing. These franchises like any other business help the local economy but they are far from the backbone of our economy. Joe Robbie was a great owner much like as much as people wont admit Kraft is a great owner that did the things the way they are supposed to be done.

 

[jimmy42jack0]

Kind of funny Robert Kraft privately financed a stadium in NE in 2002 for 350 million and now 10 years later that just is a renovation that of course the taxpayers have to foot a good portion of

And the only reason he financed it himself was that the tax payers here wouldn't pay for it after he threatened to move the team to Connecticut.

The Phins have as much of a chance of leaving south Florida as the Red Sox have leaving Boston

 

[Spesh]

That's why I would love to see what the county's analysts think here, the figures they are working with. What I do know is that the county DOES want the Super Bowl and events, so I have to assume that even if a Super Bowl isn't as lucrative as the NFL wants us to believe (and I guarantee that you're right and it's not), it's still viewed as a boon to the local economy and county coffers rather than a curse.

I will probably vote in favor of this assuming that the information I've seen so far is correct.

In an ideal world, sports teams would 100% pay their own way, but I know that this isn't an ideal world and I do know that the Miami Dolphins have been one of the very, very few professional teams that has 100% paid their own way for forty odd years. We're not talking about Jeffrey "Scumbag" Loria screwing the county long and hard so that he can slash payroll here.

Id love to say "it shouldnt be" in an ideal world, but i suppose that would just prove your point. I dont disagree with your post. The NFL is the real villain here. Despite being a 9 billion dollar industry, they cant be bothered to pay for their own product. Instead theyve resorted to blackmail. And i think thats the driving force behind Miami-Dades openness to this proposal. If the worse were to occur(which i doubt) and the team did move, it would be politicial suicide for those who were publically against it. Ideology or not, people love their sports.

This deal isnt bad by NFL standards. That the county is turning the tables on the league by fining the team if they dont deliver is a good move. I can only hope that becomes standard practice for these deals. No doubt the county does want their Superbowls, but i wouldnt be surprised if they sat there and said "everyone knows this deal will get done, but lets try and squeeze out every single concession we can to screw the league over"....actually, its more of "...every single concession so we can look good", but i can pretend otherwise.

The practical part of me isnt against this. But i despise giving into blackmail. Which is exactly whats happening here and in every single other stadium negotiation.

 

[jimmy42jack0]

The Marlins Park was financed by a hotel bed tax. Please stop perpetuating this lie that Loria is an "evil" capitalist. He is a baseball team owner who understands every grand American city has a baseball team and a world class ball park that tourists can get interested in. Loria helped to create jobs during a recession and those jobs went to miamians.

If you want to be angry about the trade with the Blue Jays, fine. Be angry. But in regard to the Phins, they aren't leaving Miami

 

[dfinz77]

are there any plans to build nice hotels,restaurants, attractions, etc. next to the stadium

 

[J. David Wannyheimer]

The Marlins Park was financed by a hotel bed tax. Please stop perpetuating this lie that Loria is an "evil" capitalist. He is a baseball team owner who understands every grand American city has a baseball team and a world class ball park that tourists can get interested in. Loria helped to create jobs during a recession and those jobs went to miamians.

If you want to be angry about the trade with the Blue Jays, fine. Be angry. But in regard to the Phins, they aren't leaving Miami

Are you David Samson or something? If so, your father-in-law, Jeffrey Loria, is a scumbag who ripped off the residents of Dade County by lying about the team's financial situation and taking advantage of a crooked mayor.

 

[dlockz]

And the only reason he financed it himself was that the tax payers here wouldn't pay for it after he threatened to move the team to Connecticut.

The Phins have as much of a chance of leaving south Florida as the Red Sox have leaving Boston

Still not like he couldnt have relocated elsewhere , and wasnt it like Hartford which isnt some great distance from Boston.
he had plenty of options.
He is the main reason the team is still in NE because the former from St Louis owner wanted to move the team to ST Louis in 1994 by buying out Kraft as a minority owner. Kraft rejected it and paid a then NFL record price for the team He also purchased the stadium when it was facing bankruptcy and bought 6000 tickets tickets to sell out every game for the first time in franchise history. Kraft is a great owner, a genuine fan of his own team from the beginning not just a business man trying to make a profit(now dont get me wrong he is business man first but most owners dont have a history of being a fan of the team they buy. Kraft was a season ticket holder since 1971. Kind of a cool thing to have an owner from area that actually was a fan of team and not just an investment.