Question About Building a New Stadium (Atlanta, Columbus: for sale, to buy, MLS)

[MattCW]

Originally Posted by LovinDecatur

What can I say? Some of us got off our ass and did something. Some of us didn't. Which are you?

The one stoking uphill in a blast furnace.

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by MattCW

That was directed at the posters on here. Any time there's a topic or post about extending MARTA or running commuter rail there's two or three more about "if you don't like it just move, let's not waste money on those systems." So why do so many posters here have such resistance to extending transit?

Gotcha.

I do think the answer is ultimately political, though. To make a major transportation initiative work it's necessary to build a consensus, and that isn't easy to do.

[CAWjr]

Originally Posted by Gulch

All of which already have dedicated funding sources (the latter two of which have a 1% sales tax each to generate funding).

So we are all out of better things to spend tax revenue on? Are we all done improving this city to the point that we can just start spending money on things that are not needed?

C'mon man. I gave three examples out of probably a hundred that are a better use of funding than a new stadium.

[Gulch]

Originally Posted by CAWjr

So we are all out of better things to spend tax revenue on? Are we all done improving this city to the point that we can just start spending money on things that are not needed?

C'mon man. I gave three examples out of probably a hundred that are a better use of funding than a new stadium.

My point (which I should've made clearer) is that we should better utilize existing funding sources for roads (gas tax) MARTA and CoA sewer (sales tax) that don't involve playing footsie with the state Legislature, which is what would be required to change the recipient of the hotel tax from the GWCC complex (basically you'd have to devise a new tax due to the original one expiring once the Dome's bonds were paid off, and that would be a political hard sell).

[brownhornet]

Originally Posted by CAWjr

This is the giant misconception that pisses me off the most about this stadium deal. Stadium proponents hammered the fact that "It's not costing you a dime! It's all tax dollars paid by out of town hotel guests!" As if none of that revenue would be spent on anything to benefit the city or its residents. And everyone bought it hook, line, and sinker.

The truth is that it is costing the residents of Atlanta every single penny spent in tax revenue. All of that money could have gone to improving roads, improving sewers, improving MARTA, etc. Instead, YOUR tax revenue is being spent to placate a team & an owner who have grown weary of their perfectly fine & sustainable stadium & placed their sights on a newer model for no reason other than the fact that it's new & the team needs to keep up with the other teams in the NFL who are getting shiny new toys.

So don't buy into this whole "Blank is paying it all & hotel taxes are paying the rest." While Blank may be paying his share, YOU are paying the rest.

Ok so please break down to me how much money is going to be funded by taxes. Show me a number. And while we're on that subject, how much more money would the city have lost by not agreeing to build the Falcons a new stadium if they had moved to a city that would've? How much revenue on a yearly basis over the next 20 years would the city have lost in comparison to how much we will have to pay in "taxes"? How much money do those roads and other improvements MAKE the city in money? You obviously aren't thinking logically. And people keep talking about what we could improve but this city can't even get a bill passed to improve the city's infrastructure. The mass transit system has been stagnant for the past 20 years, but we should be super concerned about a stadium because of minimal taxes when Blank is paying for 800 million of the cost out of his own pocket? Oh ok. And this is the same forum where people complain about Atlanta not being a "first class" city lol, it's that same type of mentality as to why.

They complain about the ferris wheel, they complain about expanding marta, they complain that the streetcar wont have enough riders, complain, complain, complain. If I have a to pay a few extra dollars a year in taxes to be able to still have the option at least to go see a game in our city I don't mind.

[HH82]

Originally Posted by brownhornet

Ok so please break down to me how much money is going to be funded by taxes. Show me a number. And while we're on that subject, how much more money would the city have lost by not agreeing to build the Falcons a new stadium if they had moved to a city that would've? How much revenue on a yearly basis over the next 20 years would the city have lost in comparison to how much we will have to pay in "taxes"? How much money do those roads and other improvements MAKE the city in money? You obviously aren't thinking logically. And people keep talking about what we could improve but this city can't even get a bill passed to improve the city's infrastructure. The mass transit system has been stagnant for the past 20 years, but we should be super concerned about a stadium because of minimal taxes when Blank is paying for 800 million of the cost out of his own pocket? Oh ok. And this is the same forum where people complain about Atlanta not being a "first class" city lol, it's that same type of mentality as to why.

They complain about the ferris wheel, they complain about expanding marta, they complain that the streetcar wont have enough riders, complain, complain, complain. If I have a to pay a few extra dollars a year in taxes to be able to still have the option at least to go see a game in our city I don't mind.

Hear hear!!

[Newsboy]

BACK ON TOPIC: now that the south site is all but a done deal, can anybody say what kind of profile / view the new stadium will have? Both from a fans and skyline perspective? The Dome is fairly prominent even being where it is now; I hope the new stadium moreso.

[GeorgiaLakeSearch]

If you don't like where you live you can move. I see some residents of the city(who tend to be younger) complaining on this forum that it is unfair that they have to subsidize people that suburban residents do not have too. They are not forced to subsizie these people they chose to... they would rather force other people to take care of the city, I personally haven't given a second thought to my city tax(now my US income tax is another story). I may have to subsidize some "welfare queens," but there are conveniences to living in the city. There is a cost to everything.

Atlanta has reliable waste pickup...

[Zanarkand A East]

Originally Posted by westau

The NHL comment tells me all I need to know about your opinions and knowledge of sports in Atlanta. Absolutely nothing.

Post of the Year.

[westau]

Originally Posted by CAWjr

How about we look at real numbers:



Explain to me how any MLS team, even the L.A. or Seattle teams, would be worth a $200 million investment on their own when the average team value is $61M and the average total revenue is $23.2M?

To Matt's point about the Silverbacks, selling out a 7,500 person stadium isn't a challenge for a Division III college football program or even for a major high school football program. To hang your hat on the team selling out 7,500 tickets sounds good when you say "They have sold out almost every game!" until you look at what that really means.

As for my personal knowledge of sports in Atlanta, I will assume that the fact that you went right to a dismissive attack as your realization that you are fighting a losing battle here. But if you would like to go there, how about you be more descriptive. Do you want to talk about how the Thrashers failed because of Atlanta Spirit? How they failed because of dismal attendance? Or is there a super secret reason that you know & that no one else is aware of?

My whole point is that wanting an MLS team is fine in theory, but to suggest that an MLS team is worth a $200 million investment for the city is a joke when the ROI would take 10 years to recoup.

Feel free to quote someone here who said that was the whole reason and worthy of a $200 million investment that has nothing to do with any other benefits because I think you are making it up and is a point in an argument that doesn't exist.


To the Thrashers, the attendance was bad because of Atlanta Spirit. The fans and the city of Atlanta had nothing to do with the Thrashers not thriving here and moving to Canada.