The recently approved 30-year leases for the Steelers
and Pirates at their new stadiums were examined by Jon
Schmitz of the PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, who wrote that while
the agreements "give nearly all the new revenue from the
stadiums to the teams," they put the Pittsburgh Sports &
Exposition Authority "on the hook for major repair and
improvement expenses." In addition, the Steelers' lease
"requires the public to pay two-thirds of the cost" of a
10,000-seat, 40-luxury-box expansion to the stadium if the
team "can show it's needed." The authority "must set up
capital improvement funds for both stadiums," depositing $3M
initially and adding $650,000 to both funds every year. The
leases "also give the teams the ability, under certain
circumstances, to demand amenities that are similar to those
installed in competitors' stadiums." Although the stadium
leases are "favorable" to the Steelers and Pirates,
authority members said that negotiating the agreements
"wasn't hardball" because the "aim was to make the deals as
attractive as possible for the teams" and allow them to
"maximize" their revenue potential. But the "most
controversial" aspects of the leases are the capital
improvement funds, which stipulate that the teams' annual
$650,000 contributions to the authority are "supposed to
come from" their stadium revenues, which aren't
"guaranteed." If there is a shortfall due to slow ticket
sales or concessions, the authority "must make up the
difference." Authority Exec Dir Stephen Leeper said that a
new stadium and a favorable lease will help the Pirates
"bring in an extra" $25-30M per year, while the Steelers
"would probably do even better" (POST-GAZETTE, 5/21).
TICKET PRICES: When the Steelers open their new stadium
next year, team officials "expect" upper-level seats to cost
$46 per game and lower-level seats to cost $52. The team is
also selling first-time seat licenses and has already sold
48,000 licenses at fees ranging from $250 to $2,700.
Meanwhile, the Pirates are selling seat licenses for $2,000-
8,000 for 2,900 seats at PNC Park (POST-GAZETTE, 5/21).
