CT Gov. John Rowland and "top legislators" presented "a
whole new set of numbers" yesterday that said the proposed
Patriots stadium in Hartford "would start making money in
its fifth year of operation -- far sooner than under
previous scenarios," according to Keating & Daly of the
HARTFORD COURANT. The new projections were made after
Rowland and legislators agreed to use "at least" $100M from
this year's projected budget surplus as a down payment for
the $375M stadium, which will result in the state borrowing
less money and saving "about" $260M in interest costs over
30 years. Keating & Daly note that "for the first time,"
study numbers "included projections for upgrading" UConn's
football team to Div. I-A. In other news, Hartford Mayor
Michael Peters and Phoenix Home Life CEO Robert Fiondella
met with top HUD official Andrew Cuomo yesterday, and "were
optimistic that Hartford could receive $8 million in federal
money to clean up and help prepare the overall stadium site
at the Adriaen's Landing project" (HARTFORD COURANT, 12/11).
GETTIN' TOUGH? In Boston, Tina Cassidy reports that CT
officials "confirmed that the state is asking Patriots Owner
Robert Kraft to back down on the luxury seat guarantees it
originally offered" him (BOSTON GLOBE, 12/11). While one
team source said that the Patriots "are willing to listen,"
others "made it clear there is almost no room for change in
the guarantees for luxury box and club seat sales." Also in
Boston, Ellen Silberman writes that a proposal "to limit the
guarantees to 10 years ... would kill the deal." One team
source: "If Connecticut wants the guarantees to end in 10
years, then the lease ends in 10 years" (BOSTON HERALD,
12/11). Rowland, on the deal, which will go to state
legislature on Tuesday: "Some of us may feel that it's a
little sweeter than we would like it to be. There will be
some negotiations, and I think we'll probably make some
changes between now and Tuesday." While legislators "have
become increasingly vocal in their doubts about the plan,
legislative leaders still express confidence that the
package will win approval" (Mike Allen, N.Y. TIMES, 12/11).
NATIONAL NEWS: The Patriots' deal was the subject of
"The Fleecing of America" on "NBC Nightly News," as NBC's
Fred Francis called it the "richest stadium deal in sports
history." Rowland: "The economic impact and the excitement
and all the morale impact this has on our community is well
worth this investment." Francis: "You gave away the family
store." Rowland: "Oh not at all. I don't think so. We did
what we had to do to get them to move to Hartford to be, I
think, the nucleus of our economic development in this
community. I may be wrong, but I don't think so. I'm
betting my political reputation on it." Francis: "It's
nearly a $1 billion bet with odds stacked against the
taxpayers. An outrageous fleecing of America" (NBC, 12/10).
