MA Gov. Paul Cellucci and state House Speaker Thomas
Finneran "offered vital concessions" Friday on plans for a
new Fenway Park, according to Cosmo Macero of the BOSTON
HERALD. Cellucci said that he is "willing to share revenue"
from two planned parking garages with both the city and the
Red Sox, while Finneran "forcefully declared that he expects
no payback" to the state on "about" $50M worth of
infrastructure work around the ballpark. The state's
"willingness to deal could form a critical bridge toward a
three-way" ballpark financing package (BOSTON HERALD, 5/13).
Also in Boston, Will McDonough wrote that the bottom line"
on the team "trying to build" a new ballpark is, "They don't
know how to get it done. It's not [Mayor Thomas Menino].
It's not any alleged conspirators trying to blow up the
project. It's the people the Red Sox have hired and paid
for the last couple of years to walk a new park through
Boston City Hall and the state Legislature." MLB
Commissioner Bud Selig: "No team has ever been willing to
put up over [$300M] like the Red Sox have. ... That's why
it's hard for me ... to understand why there has been such a
delay in getting this thing done" (BOSTON GLOBE, 5/13).
