Public funding for a new Fenway Park "could hit a mind-
numbing" $300M, "shattering precedents set by a half dozen
similar projects" in other MLB cities, according to Cosmo
Macero in a front page report in the BOSTON HERALD. But the
Red Sox are "wrestling with the plan in an effort to keep
the level of city and state financing down by taking a hard
look at all sources of revenue to be generated by the new
park." MA House Speaker Thomas Finneran yesterday suggested
the team should consider bringing in "partners and
investors" to assist on the project. But sources familiar
with the team's plans say that team CEO John Harrington will
"allow the project to die before disrupting the franchise's
ownership structure." Macero writes that new projections
"on a host of public components" in the estimated $600M
project show that taxpayers would carry "at least" $225-250M
of the cost obligation. Sources familiar with the project
say that "uncertainty over the team's ability to fund the
full" $350M toward the ballpark's cost could "push the
public tab" toward $300M (BOSTON HERALD, 1/12).
