County covets Reds stadium tax dollars

Not looking good for the Reds in Sarasota. That's just terrible . . .NOT! -SDM

By DOUG SWORD
doug.sword@heraldtribune.com

SARASOTA -- Millions of dollars once earmarked for a new Ed Smith Stadium could also be used to help balance the county's budget.

And so as city officials peddle a proposal to keep the Cincinnati Reds here for spring training, some Sarasota County officials are reluctant to pitch in $18 million in bed tax money to help pay for it.

That same money could go toward cleaning and maintaining beaches, freeing up money in the general fund for deputy sheriff's salaries or public works engineers.

In 2006, when commissioners unanimously voted to raise the bed tax and contribute $18 million to the Reds project, it seemed like everybody was in favor of building a new ballpark. But there was an April 2007 deadline to reach a stadium deal, and it did not happen in time.

By midsummer, as local officials were rewriting their budgets following a state-mandated cut in property taxes,, county commissioners barely resisted the urge to grab the bed tax dollars to help fill a $30 million shortfall in their budget.

What county officials suspect is that they will need the money if voters approve a Jan. 29 ballot question that would cut their property tax bills.

The county eliminated about 120 jobs last year to balance its budget and will be looking at more budget cuts over the next two months. That only increases the pressure to use the money once set aside for a new stadium.

"Like I've said, this couldn't happen at a worse time," Commissioner Jon Thaxton said of the newest proposal to rebuild Ed Smith Stadium.

The bed tax for the stadium has been collected since May 1, 2007. By the end of the tourism season the fund will stand at about $1.25 million.

That is enough, over 20 years, to support $18 million in construction bonds for a stadium. Overall, the new ballpark would cost $41 million, so the bed tax is the biggest part of the financial package. The Reds, the state and city are splitting the remaining $23 million cost.

Stadium supporters point out that state law restricts the use of bed tax money to specific purposes: tourism advertising, beach renourishment, stadiums, conference centers and beach maintenance.

But county officials say they are spending about $800,000 from the county general fund on beach cleaning. That is the same general fund that pays for salaries.

That means, says County Administrator Jim Ley, that $800,000 of the $1.25 million originally set aside for the Reds stadium could go toward beach maintenance. That would allow the county to use the $800,000 in general fund money now spent on beaches for other purposes.

If the Reds deal falters, the other $450,000 a year would go toward a beach renourishment fund. That fund gets $1.75 million a year in bed tax money and helped fund the recent renourishment on Siesta Key.

Thaxton has said he would have a hard time funding the stadium with the $800,000 that could be switched to other parts of the county budget. Commissioner Nora Patterson says she cannot support spending that on the stadium because of the budget situation.

Two commissioners, Shannon Staub and Joe Barbetta, say spring training is a crucial part of the local economy and if there is still a chance to deal with the Reds, it should be explored. The downturn is one of the reasons to reconsider a stadium deal, Staub said.

"It's a terrible time to be losing that economic impact" from spring training, she said.

Commissioners are expected to vote Tuesday on whether negotiations between the county, city and Reds should continue.

Last modified: January 20. 2008 1:50AM

http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20080120/NEWS/801200341