In three weeks, residents in Arlington, Texas will be voting whether or not to allow the Dallas Cowboys to build a new stadium in their area. The proposal from owner Jerry Jones is to finance costs by raising sales tax in the area. It seems that the majority of the residents are against the idea of raising sales tax and believe that the billionaire should pay for the stadium himself.
Supporters say that it would give a huge boost to the struggling economy by making Arlington a year round destination. The team's campaign is ramping up as the date grows closer. Commercial ads of players planting flowers in city parks and paving roads to give the idea that the team will benefit the area.
It seems that the minimal increase in sales tax will be far outweighed by the benefits of the new stadium. Surely the economy will pick up and property value will probably increase substantially. Looking at the situation solely on economic benefits, the stadium seems like a great idea. However, if you aren't a sports fan or one of those who doesn't encourage change or growth, the stadium could have a very big downside.
3 comments:
Take it from a Cleveland and Cincinnati resident who gets soaked everytime he buys something: Government funded sports arenas are bad ideas.
Cincinnati used to have the lowest sales taxes in the State pre-stadium, which made it much more attractive to live there. Post stadium Cleveland has the highest sales tax (8%) in the state and they scratch their heads wondering why people are leaving, instead of staying to watch their mediocre teams.
There is no doubt that stadiums can indeed bolster local struggling economies once they are in place. Take for instance the Delta Center. Right now it is one of only a handful of downtown Salt Lake City's saving grace. If it were in Sandy as Miller once contmeplated, downtown would really be hurting even more than it currently is. I've been to the ballpark at Arrlington where the Rangers play and it is a beautiful ballpark. The Cowboys would really flourish in that part of Dallas. If you've ever seen the current stadium, you know that it is a wreck. Go big D.
The evidence that professional sports benefit cities is mostly negative. One of the biggest reasons for that is the huge stadiums that must be built. They almost never are able to cover their costs on a continuing basis (the Superdome in New Orleans is one of the exceptions to that).
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