Soaring costs are stalling stadium

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MARLINS STADIUM

Soaring costs are stalling stadium

County commissioners are less than hopeful about a Marlins stadium deal -- but aren't willing to give up on discussions just yet.

BY TERE FIGUERAS NEGRETE

tfigueras@herald.com

Miami-Dade County commissioners Wednesday shied away from pushing forward to acquire land needed for a new Marlins stadium, citing frustration with the slow pace of the negotiations between the club, the city and the county -- and adding fresh evidence that hopes for a publicly funded ballpark are flagging.

''We've put a lot of effort and political capital into this,'' said Commissioner Sally Heyman, who chairs the commission's recreation and cultural affairs committee. "It's up to the Marlins now.''

The committee, whose purview includes making recommendations on an as-yet unfinalized stadium deal, balked at a piece of legislation that would have directed the county to hire property appraisers and take other steps needed to purchase the privately owned land surrounding the Orange Bowl.

But County Manager George Burgess' bleak outline of the stadium prospects this week -- coupled with doubts that the ball club's estimated cost for building the stadium are even realistic -- prompted a slew of disaster-related metaphors.

''It gives me the shakes,'' Commissioner Javier Souto said. "It's like flying into a storm with no instruments.''

Or, in the words of Commissioner Natacha Seijas, akin to "jumping into a pond by ourselves with no lifesavers.''

Despite the hyperbole, no one was ready to call the deal dead this week.

The talks are ongoing, said Burgess, although he acknowledged the Marlins had recently ''downsized'' its team of negotiators.

The committee asked Burgess to come back in a month with yet another update -- one that they hope will tie up the loose ends that have bedeviled negotiations for months.

The county had pledged $138 million for the project, including $60 million in tourist taxes formerly allotted to the city of Miami for Miami Arena that would have been used to issue bonds. The city would have chipped in $28 million plus land near the Orange Bowl. The Marlins promised $192 million and parking revenues would have brought in $32 million.

THE GAP

That still left a $30 million gap, which Burgess estimates has now ballooned to as high as $100 million, thanks to projected increases in construction costs and rising property values around the Orange Bowl.

Neither city nor county officials say they'll approve more money for the deal. The ball club, which declined to comment Wednesday, has also said it won't add any more money to the pot.

The club estimated construction costs alone for a retractable-roof stadium near the Orange Bowl would cost $385 million -- a number Burgess said has not been verified and which county officials say is likely suspect.

''That's crazy,'' said Commissioner Carlos Gimenez. As a former Miami city manager, Gimenez was privy to earlier talks with the Marlins and said that number is improbably low, given the rising costs of construction and the shortage of qualified labor amid downtown Miami's high-rise boom.

Pressed to give his best guess, the county manager placed the figure in the $500 million range, but stressed it "was a hunch.''

Said Gimenez: "If the gap is so insurmountable, we might as well close up shop.''

The county has offerred a handful of alternatives to the proposed Orange Bowl deal -- all of them likely to bring a host of complications or objections from at least one interested party.

''None of them are a slam-dunk, by any stretch,'' Burgess said.

TO VOTERS

One scenario would bring the issue to the voters, an election that would require prior approval from the County Commission and would have to wait until November. A special election would cost the county roughly $2.5 million.

Other alternatives include building a dome over Dolphins Stadium -- something NFL officials are loath to accept -- or tearing down the existing Orange Bowl and replacing it with a new Marlins stadium.

Razing the Orange Bowl would slim down construction costs and spare the county from having to buy land from neighbors.

It would mean the University of Miami would play its football games at Dolphins Stadium, stripping the Hurricanes of their historic home.

And it would also raise questions about the $50 million in county bond proceeds earmarked for Orange Bowl renovations. Voters approved the money in November as part of billions of dollars in improvements countywide.

Gimenez wondered aloud if that money could be transferred to fund a ballpark if the Orange Bowl was demolished, something Burgess cautioned would require "considerable public discourse.''

`ROOF READY'

Building a stadium without the retractable roof -- but that is ''roof ready'' should funds become available -- would be another fix.

But the Marlins don't seem willing to budge on that matter, Burgess said.

Nonetheless, commissioners told Burgess they hope something -- anything -- can be resolved by the next committee meeting on Oct. 12.

''Take your best swing, Mr. Manager,'' Gimenez said.