ManicMarlin

We've waited this long...I suppose we can wait longer. :confused

The Marlins are about 70 million short. I thought the gap was $100 mil.

Jerry del Castillo: Stadium deal is almost past the study phase and is more into the planning phase. When did he say this? Today? Also, it's "almost past the study phase" but it's "more into the planning phase"? Don't those statements contradict themselves? I suppose they do if one if dependant on the other which is my assumption. Is my assumption wrong?

I've got some good news...I talked to my cousin who is Codina's personal financial advisor and he said that codina did infact agree to donate the land and that the county manager is working his a** off to get this deal done. He was pretty confidant that a stadium deal will be done. :arms if this is true.

The end of May is fast approaching. Are we going to get an update or announcement on the stadium before the end of the month? And if the month ends before we do, what does that mean?

He wants to build a Main Street type atmosphere surrounding the stadium and wants to have 25-30k customers in the area for 81 days a year. Something like Huizenga does near Dolphin Stadium. Except Codina is going to get what he wants because he's willing to see the big picture and share. Good for Codina if it's true and too bad for Wayne...should have donated the land.

Now the "everyone" comment is in general from the fans Meaning that the feeling is that the stadium deal in Hialeah will get done just like they thought the OB was going to get done. Quite often while tailgating before UM games people were asking "where's the stadium going? I NEVER claimed that the people close to negotiations said it was done deal. So you're basing the "everyone" comment on fans, which is what I thought. That makes it meaningless to me. The point I was trying to make was that the comments coming out of Hialeah and the Marlins sound better than they've ever sounded. I don't care how close anyone says the deal is to being completed. When it's is signed sealed and delivered I will celebrate. Me too It's quite obvious you don't read the entire post. You somehow got the impression that because I rooted for the Longhorns that I am from Texas. How about the line where I said "There has been enough disappointment over the years down here" you couldn't gather that I am from Miami???? I read the entire post, but you're right...I did miss that. A simple oversight. Sorry. Let me give you a slight clue, I was born and raised here and graduated from UT. I am willing to bet that I go to more sporting events down here (in S. Florida) than you do. I was raised in South Florida too and I'm willing to bet that you do go to more events down there only because I'm not there anymore, out of necessity, so don't pump your chest out so much. Just because you're there doesn't make you a better fan(I know you didn't say that, but that's what you implied in that statement). When I get back down there in a few years, I'll be at plenty, probably with season tickets to all four sports. Back on topic. So Codina wants to build a mall on that land, is that what it is? So what's stopping him from building his mall anyway, even without the Marlins there? I think someone above might have hit on it. The stadium would make his land more valuable and the small amount of acres that he gives up would be recouped by the increased value of the land around it. Is that right? Now it starts to make sense why he would give away land like that.

...the land is going to be given by Codina Now this is the big deal here. You seem pretty sure about this and I have no reason to doubt you yet. Now I'm 100% positive that there's no way that this guy would give away land for nothing, so there is something that the city or county, or the Marlins, is offering him in return for this. No business man is going to give away his assests for free. The question is what is this that they're offering him in return? I'd really really like to know, if you know what it is Festa.

Everyone thought the Orange Bowl site was done deal. Care to show this information? Sounds like your opinion to me. Maybe you can show me some quotes from "everyone" that said the Orange Bowl site was a "done deal". I don't remember that being said by anyone related to that negotiation, ever. But since you boys from Texas seem to know a lot about the inner workings of South Florida negotiations maybe you can show me some of those quotes from "everyone". It was a horrible choice for a location and got what it deserved. NEXT! hialeah's worse, imo. For crying out loud people! Do you really care where the freakin' stadium is built as long as it's in South Florida? I don't care if they built the damn thing in the middle of Alligator Alley, I'd still go to games.

Oh, if you connect the dots you will find out who exactly his source is. :mischief Ok...so this guys a radio show host....he knows the mayor...personally? That far enough?

He didn't. Del Castillo was told by his sources. They want to get the rebate so Hialeah and Miami-Dade can reduce their contribution from the money collected from the ballpark district. And who pray tell are "his sources"? I understand them wanting to lower their contributions, but if they start building this thing and go to the state what's stopping the state from saying, despite the help from the local legislators, "hey, you've already got a stadium, bugger off!"

The gap is zero. The $60 million isn't necessary to start construction. Is that what he said on the radio? If so then why even bother with the rebate?

Do you really think they are going to start building this thing with a funding gap? That sounds a little weird to me. I mean, what happens if they get a year into it and the state still doesn't give them the rebate? I'd imagine that they'll have to come up with a backup plan to fill the funding gap with the hope that the Miami delegates will push this thing through next year.

lets put it this way, it sounds positive and nothing seem to have changed with the negative outcome out of Tallahasee :thumbup Thumbs Up baby! Right on.

So this sounds like really really really good news then. :thumbup

o yeah and the marlins went to a skool today with hermida cabrera and hanley in guess where???? HIALEAH Yeah, booooooooooooooooooooyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy! What school they go to?

Robaina to be on in a few minutes. He was stuck in a meeting. Maybe the stadium signing meeting? Hmmmm????? :mischief :thumbup

wats happening Yes please for those that can't listen or don't speak the espanole.

....but a stadium deal is imminent according to what ive heard in the under world...cause that is where i hang out in the underworld. You hang out in the "underworld"? I'm still new to this site so I don't know everyone that well, can you tell me what you do? Thanks. P.S. I'm curious because I see a lot of people making these claims and I don't know who to trust because I really don't know how you know what you do. If you're actually "in the know" that's great, but if you're just another fan then I'd like to know that too. Thanks.

Miami doesn't deserve to be represented by the Marlins. The only city this team should represent is Hialeah. But we will never see the Hialeah Marlins because of marketing purposes. Agreed. The state of Florida doesn't deserve it either. I second the South Florida Marlins, but as with the Hialeah Marlins, that won't happen for marketing purposes. They'll either stay with "Florida" or change to "Miami", neither deserve it though.

Nothing will stop the local delegation from introducing a subsidy for the Marlins next year. They can structure a deal with options depending upon whether the subsidy passes or not. There may not be a "next year".

Check out the line about feeling "a chill." Link LEGISLATURE 2006 Marlins bill ran out of time Bad clock management, bad luck and clever opponents helped doom the latest plan in the Legislature to help build a $430 million Marlins baseball park with tax subsidies. BY MARC CAPUTO mcaputo@MiamiHerald.com * Updates | Florida Marlins TALLAHASSEE - A $60 million tax subsidy to build a new Florida Marlins stadium -- sought by the baseball team since 2000 -- died just before midnight Friday as crestfallen Miami-Dade lawmakers powerlessly watched their colleagues in the House chew up time debating other legislation. There was plenty of blame to go around on the final day of the two-month lawmaking session: From the parliamentary tactics used by both opponents and proponents to worries about corporate welfare and insurance troubles to an odd speech in the Florida House of Representatives about the fabled battle of Thermopylae. The defeat in the House was a cruel twist for the ballpark's backers who noted that, until Friday, the Senate was the subsidy's death chamber. This time, three Miami-Dade senators swiftly and secretly stitched together the plan and the votes only three days before the end of the session -- a late maneuver that helped to doom the plan, which even the Marlins knew nothing of. ''From what I saw, the House was not being respectful of the promise that they would take it up,'' said Sen. Rudy Garcia, a Republican from Hialeah, where the Marlins are interested in building the retractable-roof ballpark. ''I was appalled. We finally had a vehicle. We finally had a plan to get this done. I helped walk the bill over myself,'' Garcia said. ``But as soon as I saw the House speaker, he smiled at me and turned away. I felt a chill.'' Tick. Tick. Tick. There were 17 minutes left in the session, and Rep. Don Brown, R-DeFuniak Springs, was speaking about a big insurance reform package, sponsored by Garcia in the Senate, for the state-run insurer of last resort, Citizens Property Insurance. Brown's long speech covered every aspect of the bill, which calls for big rate increases. He urged lawmakers to have courage like that of the outnumbered legion of Greeks who died while holding off Persian invaders at Thermopylae in 480 B.C. Tick. Tick. The House soon approved the insurance bill at 11:45 p.m. Next up: a cancer-drug donation bill. It had a controversial final-day amendment attached that weakened strict guarantees to ensure prescription drug quality, said opponent Rep. Mark Mahon, R-Jacksonville. Mahon spoke against the bill and instantly felt the glare of Rivera and Miami Republican Rep. J.C. Planas. ''I didn't realize what was going on,'' Mahon said. ``People get irritated when it's 11:55 p.m. and you're in the way of their bill.'' Tick. Miami's Marco Rubio, who is to succeed Panama City's Allan Bense as House speaker this year, spoke to his fellow Republican at the podium. The cancer-drug bill passed at 11:59 p.m. despite Mahon's entreaties. IT'S OVER The gavel fell. ''It's midnight. We're done,'' Bense said. Bense later said he wanted to vote for the bill, but it arrived too late. He said there was no way to extend the 60-day lawmaking session because many in the Legislature wanted to go home. Planas said he didn't think Mahon was trying to sabotage the Marlins. ''He felt passionately about the issue and he was right to say what he said. For us, the Marlins bill was a rally in the ninth inning when we were down by five runs. The other team made a good catch at the end and that was that,'' Planas said. ``To quote The Godfather: This is the business we chose.'' And the business of the Legislature follows its own timetable. Throughout the last day, the House and Senate stopped and started amid the backroom negotiations of the insurance package. The Marlins proposal was still being hammered out. Under the proposal, either Miami-Dade County or the city of Hialeah would have built the $430 million stadium, which would have received $2 million annually for 30 years. The subsidy is part of a state program governing the seven existing tax breaks for ballparks. Teams that show they can generate more than $2 million annually in sales tax collections get that amount of money from the state. And once a team qualifies for the subsidy, it gets the money even if it doesn't generate the $2 million in tax money in future years. The Marlins, under previous owner H. Wayne Huizenga, won the subsidy already. So the new bill allowed the team and any other sports franchise to receive the subsidy twice, but only with future legislative approval. The bill also sought to make sure the money was not rebated to a team if it didn't generate $2 million in sales tax collection. SENATE SPEED BUMP When the proposal hit the Senate, Sen. Jim King, an opponent of the ''corporate welfare'' of sports teams subsidies, was one of the first speed bumps. ''If you think this is anywhere near the end of the dipping into the public coffers to support sports franchises, you're crazy,'' King said. King also pointed out the ''absurd'' appearance of sticking insurance customers with higher rates while giving tax breaks to sports teams. The Legislature, though, did approve a subsidy bill for baseball spring-training facilities and a guaranteed $60 million tax break for the Orlando Magic basketball team. But senators refused to add the Marlins to that bill. Instead, they added the Marlins language to a stand-alone Magic subsidy bill, which became worthless once the Magic was given the subsidy in the spring-training legislation. In protest, Rep. David Riviera, R-Miami, cast a protest vote against the spring-training bill. ''The moment the Senate stripped the Orlando Magic away from the Marlins,'' Rivera said. ``I thought South Florida was being set up.'' Staff writers Mary Ellen Klas, Gary Fineout and Jennifer Mooney-Piedra contributed to this report

This is now about plan B Maybe it's about Plan A and the state funding was Plan B. Maybe they had a plan together and thought, "hell if we go to the state this would be a lot easier, lets give it a shot." Now that's it's dead, again, they can move on with their lives and go with what they may have originally been planning. Hope this is true, it's just speculation.

they got screwed over by Wayne basically, tried to sue to discontinue the payments or something if I remember correctly, & lost. I think it's just sour grapes at this point. Sounds like it. Talk about holding a grudge. :banghead

"I just don't think that's the way to run a railroad.... What happened last night was unfortunate," Senate President Tom Lee said Thursday. "This is a second subsidy to the same team. There's all these teams out there now are saying: 'Hey, what about me?' So we've been scratching our head today to try to figure out something that maybe wouldn't appropriate money, but would at least address this situation on a statewide basis so that this wouldn't just be another bite at the apple for the Florida Marlins." I, I, I, me, me me. It's like he's made this his personal mission. Well I'm glad you've taken it upon yourself to decide what's best for everyone Tom. Put it to a vote jackass! No kidding right? Put it to a vote and let everyone decide. So let me get this right...They give a tax rebate to the "marlins" when Wayne owned the team, but now that he doesn't own it anymore, somehow he gets to keep the money even though it was for the "marlins" and not for the individual right? Now, instead of taking it away from the individual that doens't own the team anymore and give it to the actual team, they complain about giving "a second subsidy to the same team" even though the team doesn't actually have one. So they screwed up the first time by not making sure the rebate was transfered to the team during a sale, refuse to fix that problem, and are complaining when the team comes back and asks for the rebate that they should actually have? Only a government organization can make this seem logical. What a bunch of dumb-***s! Jeez.