Tennessee Comptroller Issues Conditional Approval Of Chattanooga Lookouts Stadium Plan
Image Credit: Chattanooga Lookouts / Facebook
The Tennessee Conservative [By Jason Vaughn] –
Tennessee Comptroller Jason Mumpower states that the plans to build the new South Broad District in Chattanooga, that include a new stadium for the Lookouts, are in the best interest of the state if two conditions are met.
Mumpower states that the final contract with the Lookouts will need to include an unconditional commitment to make annual lease payments of at least one million dollars for 30 consecutive years. Any excess tax revenues will only be used for eligible purposes. If both those conditions are met, then Mumpower will issue a final determination.
The Chattanooga City Council approved the deal in August, creating a stadium authority and allowing that authority to bond up to $80 million at a rate up to 6% for 30 years for the projected $79.5 million project.
In August, it was reported that the city and county will each reportedly contribute more than $1 million to the deal initially. The bonds are then expected to be repaid through $49.8 million worth of property taxes from the site, $17.5 million worth of lease payments ($1 million per year), an estimated $5 million in sales taxes retained by the team after it was approved by Tennessee lawmakers and an estimated $3 million in parking fees.
The stadium is part of a larger project in the South Broad area where the Double-A Cincinnati Reds affiliate Chattanooga Lookouts would relocate from AT&T Field in downtown Chattanooga, built in 2000.
Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly said that “This project will conservatively generate tens of millions of dollars in new money for schools. It will provide millions more in new permanent tax revenue to pave roads, invest in infrastructure and support workers.”
However, economists have shown consistently that new sports stadiums do not create new funds for a city but instead transfer spending from elsewhere in a community to the new areas.
“It’s the same as always, if people start going to the Lookouts game and spending their money there then that money, which was being spent elsewhere that would have gone to funding other government services, is now going to fund the stadium,” economist J.C. Bradbury of Kennesaw State University in Georgia previously said about the proposal. “It’s even a little bit more interesting because my guess is that most of the people who go to the new stadium will be people who were going to the old stadium, but that’s tax revenue that at the old site will be diminished and go to the new site. So I’m not sure what the game is here.”
Lawmakers approved legislation for the sales tax deal for the Lookouts Stadium in May of this year with a 79-11 vote in the House and 28-0 vote in the Senate. Governor Lee followed with his approval later in the month.
The legislation in question, HB2609 and SB2890 were sponsored by Representative Patsy Hazlewood (R-District 27-Signal Mountain) and Senator Todd Gardenhire (R-District 10 -Chattanooga) respectively.
About the Author: Jason Vaughn, Media Coordinator for The Tennessee Conservative ~ Jason previously worked for a legacy publishing company based in Crossville, TN in a variety of roles through his career. Most recently, he served as Deputy Director for their flagship publication. Prior, he was a freelance journalist writing articles that appeared in the Herald Citizen, the Crossville Chronicle and The Oracle among others. He graduated from Tennessee Technological University with a Bachelor’s in English-Journalism, with minors in Broadcast Journalism and History. Contact Jason at news@TennesseeConservativeNews.com
