FC Cincinnati has proposed building and paying for a brand new soccer stadium in Oakley itself. The club has vowed to cover the $200 million cost if the city and county provide $75 million in infrastructure improvements to the site. However, critics of the deal say the actual expense to taxpayers would be significantly higher.
The group No More Stadium Taxes opposes any public assistance on the project and is asking Cincinnati City Council to consider carefully the package of incentives and tax breaks that the Mayor has offered. Jeff Capell is with the group and says taxpayers will actually end up providing the owners with over $200 million dollars by the time the deal is over.
One of the biggest benefits to the club owners will be a tax break on the property itself. The plan calls for the new stadium to be owned by the Port Authority and the property would be exempt from paying Hamilton County's property tax. That break is worth $150 million to team owners. The club would also get to keep half the money it would have to pay the city in earnings tax and get almost $10 million more in tax increment financing from the Oakley area. The Mayor's plan also calls for spending over $7 million from the cities sale of Blue Ash Airport on the project.
Capell says what taxpayers are putting up for the proposed stadium is valued higher than what the owners would spend on the stadium. He says this is the latest scam being used to finance new stadiums and was born out of the bad deal that Hamilton County made with the Reds and Bengals years ago. The group No More Stadium Taxes says study after study have shown that new stadium construction does not spark economic activity and Capell, who is an economist, says " don't underestimate how expensive of a sweetheart deal to the billionaires this is."
Cincinnati City Council could put the plan to a vote at their meeting on November 29th.