Miami-Dade County commissioners yesterday asked city Mayor Carlos Gimenez to "propose using" FIU’s stadium as a temporary home for David Beckham's "stalled" MLS franchise, according to Patricia Mazzei of the MIAMI HERALD. The "unanimous yet largely symbolic move directs Gimenez to reach out again to Beckham and his investors" to try to strike a stadium deal. MLS has said that a new soccer-specific is "required before Beckham can launch his expansion team." Yet County Commissioner Juan Zapata has argued that Beckham "might have better luck finding a stadium site once his team builds a fan base -- by playing somewhere temporarily first." Beckham's real-estate adviser John Alschuler said that the group "remains focused on finding a permanent stadium site that fits its needs." Beckham and MLS have "insisted on housing a team downtown near young professionals and mass transit" (MIAMI HERALD, 2/4). In Ft. Lauderdale, Craig Davis writes the proposed temporary solution "is unlikely to be accepted by MLS officials, who see potential in Miami but are wary of the market because of the failure of a previous team." MLS Commissioner Don Garber in December said, "If we don't have the right stadium, we're not going to Miami, nor should we go to any market without the right stadium plan. Until we get (a stadium) finalized, we can't make a commitment to go to Miami." Beckham's group since June has "been quietly seeking a stadium deal, mainly on privately owned land, with about a half-dozen potential sites identified in Miami-Dade County" (South Florida SUN-SENTINEL, 2/4).
