some good news

go to read the article on MIAMI -- For the third straight year, the Marlins had their bid to secure state funding to help build a stadium shot down.

But less than an hour after the Florida Legislature adjourned without approving state assistance, Marlins president David Samson told MLB.com that the team is determined to get a new stadium built in Miami-Dade County.

"We are disappointed with the result that occurred in Tallahassee," Samson said early Saturday morning. "But I've talked to officials from the county and city of Hialeah, and we agreed to wake up tomorrow and continue building the momentum we've had the last few weeks."

The Marlins are negotiating with Hialeah officials on a 38,000-seat, retractable-roof stadium. Those talks will continue, even without state funding.

At midnight Friday, the Florida House of Representatives adjourned without putting the Marlins' stadium issue up for a vote.

Actually, the push for state funding was a mild surprise. On Wednesday, politicians from Miami-Dade County and the city of Hialeah pursued state help in the form of a sales tax subsidy.

At 11:45 p.m. ET, the Florida Senate, which had opposed assisting the Marlins in the past, approved the $60 million sales tax subsidy by a 20-16 vote.

The subsidy would have given the Marlins a $2 million tax rebate on sales tax generated by the stadium over the next 30 years.

But with just 15 minutes left in the session, time ran out in the House.

Samson thanked the politicians who supported and pushed hard to get state help. Samson didn't speculate if Florida Gov. Jeb Bush would call a special session to revive state support.

"We continue to have a lot of momentum locally to get this done," Samson said.

The Marlins were granted permission to seek relocation last November. San Antonio has made a strong push should the team opt to leave the state of Florida.

Encouraged by discussions with Miami-Dade County and Hialeah, Samson repeated early Saturday morning that remaining in South Florida is the Marlins' primary objective.

"We remain resolute to keep the Marlins in South Florida," Samson said.

www.floridamarlins.com llok at what samson said...