Home Field Disadvantage
October 31st, 2007
Dont blame Alex Rodriguezs selfishness or Joe Torres managerial style for the Yankees post-season crumble. And dont credit Josh Becketts untouchable pitches and the one-two punch of Big Papi and MannyRamirez for Bostons triumph. The real reason the Yankees had to watch the World Series on TV as Boston swept? Taxpayer subsidies for stadiums.
Thats the somewhat unconventional view of todays Sun. After Beantown taxpayers balked at paying for a new stadium for their beloved Sox, the owners decided to invest their actual own money in improving the old ballpark in the fen, the Sun explains. On the other hand, the editorial continues, in New York City, taxpayers are being forced to shoulder the burdens of new stadiums to subsidize the multimillionaire owners and players of the Yankees and Mets. The Yankee stadium project alone will receive taxpayer subsidies of nearly $800 million, according to Good Jobs New York, a critic of the project.
If taxpayer subsidies really are the 21st century version of the Curse of the Bambino, things do not bode well for New York sports fans. The Mets, who just experienced probably the worst late season collapse in baseball history, are getting subsidies for their new stadium. Madison Square Garden, home of the Knicks (this explains everything), also gets break on property taxes, according to the Sun. And the future home of the NBA Nets in Atlantic Yards will also benefit from the
largesse of the city and state government.
In category: Gotham City, Land Use, Public Finance | No Comments »
