Cleveland's Progressive Field $200m renovation

[Obliviax]

Interesting graph (and account).

View embedded media

Good stuff. IIRC, the City of ATL didn't want to invest in a new stadium so the Braves took their stadium needs out of the city to get funding assistance.

I know someone who was involved in financing the Mercedes stadium (Falcons). After the land was bought up (by a mysterious company who was going up and down the streets buying homes in minority/under developed neighborhoods) there was an accusation made that the city and owner exploited property owners to make billiioins. Also, a historic church that was used by MLK was purchased and torn down. The city didn't want any part of that mess so balked (baseball term) of being engaged. So the Braves went elsewhere. In the NFL, we saw this with the New Jersey York Giants.

 

[The Spin Meister]

Good stuff. IIRC, the City of ATL didn't want to invest in a new stadium so the Braves took their stadium needs out of the city to get funding assistance.

I know someone who was involved in financing the Mercedes stadium (Falcons). After the land was bought up (by a mysterious company who was going up and down the streets buying homes in minority/under developed neighborhoods) there was an accusation made that the city and owner exploited property owners to make billiioins. Also, a historic church that was used by MLK was purchased and torn down. The city didn't want any part of that mess so balked (baseball term) of being engaged. So the Braves went elsewhere. In the NFL, we saw this with the New Jersey York Giants.

So what happened to the land the speculative developer bought? My guess is they devolved it with other uses and made hundreds of millions instead of billions

 

[Obliviax]

So what happened to the land the speculative developer bought? My guess is they devolved it with other uses and made hundreds of millions instead of billions

the "speculative manager" was a consultant and hired by the stadium finance team. That consortium (I assume some kind of LLC) included the city of ATL along with all of the various ownership partners. So it was bought by the landowners, zoned into a stadium complex, razed, and built.

This was all done to hide the "deep pockets" of the buyers. I've seen this done with people that don't want to be exposed. Two specific examples are an LLC that is created by a lottery winner to claim the prize so that the winner isn't individually identified as being a sudden millionaire. I also know of a family that sold their home to an LLC and moved. They were mildly upset that the person tore the home down as they had three kids that were raised there and can no longer drive by the old home. The person bought their home as an LLC so that they would not know it was the next-door neighbor who simply wanted to tear it down to have an empty lot next to her home. The family thought it was being bought by a "trust". Not a big issue but an example of what people do with LLCs on land purchases.

IIRC, some of the anger was that they also bought up land that was later used for parking and buildings that support the stadium (restaurants, hotels, clubs). So not only did they build the stadium but locked into the tangential revenue streams that the stadium brought along indirectly.

 

[Wandering Spectator]

Good stuff. IIRC, the City of ATL didn't want to invest in a new stadium so the Braves took their stadium needs out of the city to get funding assistance.

I know someone who was involved in financing the Mercedes stadium (Falcons). After the land was bought up (by a mysterious company who was going up and down the streets buying homes in minority/under developed neighborhoods) there was an accusation made that the city and owner exploited property owners to make billiioins. Also, a historic church that was used by MLK was purchased and torn down. The city didn't want any part of that mess so balked (baseball term) of being engaged. So the Braves went elsewhere. In the NFL, we saw this with the New Jersey York Giants.

Interesting. When I was in Atlanta I drove around MB Stadium and noticed that it seemed to be plopped down in between the city to the north and east and a residential area.to the west and south. Makes sense now.

 

[Obliviax]

Interesting. When I was in Atlanta I drove around MB Stadium and noticed that it seemed to be plopped down in between the city to the north and east and a residential area.to the west and south. Makes sense now.

here is an article that outlines some of the issues.

Again, I was not directly involved but the voices of concerned were quashed pretty quickly as the local media wanted the new stadium and everyone who was involved from the govt wanted the new stadium. So the only real coverage was from those underground papers and reporters. The MSM really wouldn't touch it for several reasons.

Documentary chronicles struggling community around Mercedes-Benz Stadium ahead of Super Bowl

Thousands of football (and non-football) fans are descending on Atlanta this week. They do so to see the city that has been romanticized as the mecca of black c…

andscape.com

Here is an old article when the church was trying to hold out for more money. They eventually sold but a lot of people questioned why a church, so tied to historic civil rights issues, was being torn down for some wealthy dudes.

Dispute between Atlanta, church over Falcons stadium goes next level - ProFootballTalk

With a $9 million gap keeping the powers-that-be in Atlanta from acquiring a Higher Power’s house, the stakes are increasing.Via Atlanta Daily World, the footprint of the new Falcons Stadium may be reconfigured to render unnecessary the purchase and demolition of Friendship Baptist Church. And...

profootballtalk.nbcsports.com

 

[The Spin Meister]

the "speculative manager" was a consultant and hired by the stadium finance team. That consortium (I assume some kind of LLC) included the city of ATL along with all of the various ownership partners. So it was bought by the landowners, zoned into a stadium complex, razed, and built.

This was all done to hide the "deep pockets" of the buyers. I've seen this done with people that don't want to be exposed. Two specific examples are an LLC that is created by a lottery winner to claim the prize so that the winner isn't individually identified as being a sudden millionaire. I also know of a family that sold their home to an LLC and moved. They were mildly upset that the person tore the home down as they had three kids that were raised there and can no longer drive by the old home. The person bought their home as an LLC so that they would not know it was the next-door neighbor who simply wanted to tear it down to have an empty lot next to her home. The family thought it was being bought by a "trust". Not a big issue but an example of what people do with LLCs on land purchases.

IIRC, some of the anger was that they also bought up land that was later used for parking and buildings that support the stadium (restaurants, hotels, clubs). So not only did they build the stadium but locked into the tangential revenue streams that the stadium brought along indirectly.

I missinterpted your prior post. You said the ‘ Braves went elsewhere’ so I thought that meant the land the speculators bought wasn’t used.

 

[Obliviax]

I missinterpted your prior post. You said the ‘ Braves went elsewhere’ so I thought that meant the land the speculators bought wasn’t used.

Sorry to be unclear. The Braves couldn't negotiate for land in the ATL while the Falcons were able to do so. The Braves went elsewhere and the Falcons faced the PR consequences (although all the forces aligned to minimize the PR). It should also be noted that the college football hall of fame is right there as is CNNs plaza (although there are rumors CNN is selling it).

 

[Obliviax]

Sorry to be unclear. The Braves couldn't negotiate for land in the ATL while the Falcons were able to do so. The Braves went elsewhere and the Falcons faced the PR consequences (although all the forces aligned to minimize the PR). It should also be noted that the college football hall of fame is right there as is CNNs plaza (although there are rumors CNN is selling it).

here is a better article on the Braves vs the Falcons situation. Basically, the falcons did their deal first. The mayor came under a lot of heat for the Falcons deal as well as the real estate shenanigans. The mayor was simply unwilling to take that heat again, along with a lot of other people/organizations.

The Atlanta Braves are moving to Cobb County and everyone is kind of stunned - Atlanta Magazine

For more than half a century, the Atlanta Braves have rented a prime chunk of property just south of Downtown. To accommodate this prized tenant, city and county officials have demolished entire blocks, proffered tax breaks, rerouted roads, and constructed not one but two massive stadiums. It’s...

www.atlantamagazine.com

 

[The Spin Meister]

Sorry to be unclear. The Braves couldn't negotiate for land in the ATL while the Falcons were able to do so. The Braves went elsewhere and the Falcons faced the PR consequences (although all the forces aligned to minimize the PR). It should also be noted that the college football hall of fame is right there as is CNNs plaza (although there are rumors CNN is selling it).

My bad. Re reading now I see that the Falcons built in the city and the Braves didn’t want the associated heat so they moved outside the city.