Marlins May Not Receive Enough From Hotel Taxes For Ballpark

Study Finds That Hotel Tax May Not Be Enough To Cover Debt Payments On New Marlins Ballpark

Tourists "would need to spend record amounts of money at Miami-Dade County hotels to pay the debt on a proposed" ballpark for the Marlins, according to Hanks, Dolan & Rabin of the MIAMI HERALD. Even before the economic slowdown, an analysis found that hotels "were not generating enough revenue to cover payments" on $297M in stadium debt that Miami-Dade "wants pegged to hotel taxes." Hotel taxes "would fund half of the construction tab for the new" $609M ballpark. The analysis "combined county budget figures and annual borrowing costs of about" $20M for a $297M bond. The analysis "found that without a quick turnaround in tourism, it would be 2017 before Miami-Dade's hotel taxes could sustain the stadium's debt." The analysis indicated that if hotel taxes "stay flat through 2010, Miami-Dade would need an extra $38[M] to cover bond payments by the end of 2016." Under the county's "more bullish budget forecasts, the cumulative deficit would be only" $6M. But some tourism experts "predict a far grimmer tourism landscape in the short term than what the county foresees." Citing an 8% "increase in hotel rooms and popular one-time events" like the BCS National Championship game at Dolphin Stadium, Miami-Dade's budget office predicts that hotel taxes will "set another record this year," growing by 2.4% to $75.1M. But PKF Hospitality Research in Atlanta "forecast a 6.9[%] decline in hotel revenue for this year, Miami-Dade's worst showing in seven years" (MIAMI HERALD, 2/1).

COMMUNITY WATCH: Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Alvarez wrote in an op-ed to the MIAMI HERALD, "A stadium for the Marlins is good for our community. It guarantees that a major-league sports franchise ... will be here for 35 years. It would be a shame to see the team go. Great communities have amenities such as professional sports, as well as museums and performing-arts centers. ... We've got the money, thanks to the 12 million tourists who visit us every year. Let's not shove it under a mattress. ... Let's make another investment in our community, put people to work right now and emerge from this economic downturn better and stronger" (MIAMI HERALD, 1/31).