Economists: Development Key

Economists: Development Key to PawSox Ballpark Deal

By Zach Spedden on October 30, 2017 in Minor-League Baseball, News

(Edited Story)

Economists–Mark S. Rosentraub and Nola Agha–discussed the merits of the proposal.

Unless sports venues are part of a broader real-estate development strategy, though, Mark S. Rosentraub is singing the same tune as in his 1997 book “Major League Losers”: “If you don’t do the real-estate development, you can’t win.”

Rosentraub has examined the PawSox’ quest for a new stadium because the Pawtucket Foundation, which supports the stadium-financing plan that state legislators are now considering, contracted with the University of Michigan for his work.

Rosentraub has determined that the deal is worthwhile for the city and the state because of the team’s pledge to have a development group build retail space near the stadium.

However, that commitment to develop 50,000 square feet — without state incentives — is not enough to raise the revenue necessary to pay off the bonds that would be sold to raise cash to build the stadium, says a university professor who has specialized in minor-league baseball’s impact on communities.

“If I was the city … I would ask for more,” Nola Agha, an associate professor in the University of San Francisco’s sport management program, said in an interview. “For the most part, cities get the short end of the stick. Fifty thousand square feet seems like a pretty small amount.”

Officials at the state and local level have been debating the project, but there were calls recently for the team to release more financial data information.  As was noted here last Thursday, the argument from Senate Finance Committee Chairman William Conley is that senators on the committee, as well as some city officials, need more proof that the team is financially solvent and capable of backing the public bonding.