Yankees demand an additional $400 million in public money for stadium

[DrLev]

The Yankees have essentially demanded an additional $400M of tax-free bonds from the City of New York, under the threat that the stadium will not be able to be finished otherwise...and they're lobbying Congress to get federal tax code changed to allow the money to be tax free!

LINK

Whatever Hankie wants...Hankie gets?

[HeatherC12]

Wow, all the money that team has and they can't finish the stadium without more funds!? Yikes.

[BaltimoreTerp]

The Yankees have essentially demanded an additional $400M of tax-free bonds from the City of New York, under the threat that the stadium will not be able to be finished otherwise...and they're lobbying Congress to get federal tax code changed to allow the money to be tax free!

LINK

Whatever Hankie wants...Hankie gets?

Gezz, I hate the Yankees as much as anyone, but unless they have changes the article since you posted it...

"The Yankees have essentially demanded an additional $400M of tax-free bonds from the City of New York, under the threat that the stadium will not be able to be finished otherwise..."

The team is disputing this report (not innocent, but not necessarally guilty, either), and it was made by a city councilman anyway.

"...and they're lobbying Congress to get federal tax code changed to allow the money to be tax free!"

The city is doing that, with the purpose of helping other teams as well.

I hate public financing and cities going spread-eagle for sports teams, but I don't think this is just a Yankees thing.

[TGO]

Another day, another couple hundred million dollars for New Yankee Stadium, the House that Greed and Theft Built.

This was supposed to be an almost entirely privately financed stadium. A few infrastructure improvements paid for by the city and state, totalling around 1/4 to 1/3 of the total cost and that was supposed to be it (and most of those improvements were needed anyway, like a commuter train station stop). The Yankees are now trying to SCAM money out of the taxpayers for the stadium itself, which was not the deal. I hope the officials call their bluff and deny the request, but judging from the quotes I doubt they will.

[RShack]

I hate the MFY's as much as anybody, but I don't see where they "demanded" anything.

Now, I have zero idea about what actually happened, but this is what the article that was linked to says in its entirety...

The Yankees would like more tax-exempt public financing to finish their new Bronx stadium but are vowing to complete the project with or without the extra money, city officials said Wednesday night.

"The Yankees have assured us, and we fully expect, that the stadium will be completed on time," said Seth Pinsky, president of the city Economic Development Corp.

Earlier Wednesday, Assemblyman Richard Brodsky (D-Westchester) told The Associated Press that the Yankees would not finish the stadium without an additional $400 million in public funds - a notion challenged by the team.

"This will not affect the completion of the stadium," Yankees President Randy Levine insisted.

About $941 million in tax-exempt public bonds have already been issued for the $1.3 billion stadium, which is to open next year.

Internal Revenue Service regulations prohibit more public debt to be incurred for the stadium.

City officials have been lobbying in Washington for a change in the IRS regulations, which could benefit other local projects, including construction of new homes for the Mets and Nets, Pinsky said.

"The Yankees have informally expressed to us an interest in receiving additional financing for the stadium project. What we've told the Yankees is if [the IRS regulations] were to change, we'd be willing to consider the option."

[TGO]

Brodsky has been known to play hardball with the Yankees (about 12 years ago he floated the idea of seizing them by eminent domain so they could be publicly owned like the Packers), so it wouldn't shock me if the Yankees didn't make the "pay or else" claim he says they did. But they're still asking for me, and as a NY taxpayer I want the answer to be no.

[DrLev]

I hate the MFY's as much as anybody, but I don't see where they "demanded" anything.

Now, I have zero idea about what actually happened, but this is what the article that was linked to says in its entirety...

Unfortunately, I linked to the Daily News, which is kind of a rag if you ask me. There are some differing details in articles in other sources.