St. Louis County taxpayers "will not be asked to support a new football stadium on the downtown riverfront -- at least for now," according to Hunn & Giegerich of the ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH. County Executive Steve Stenger said that he "would not support county tax dollars being used for a new NFL stadium without a public vote." He added that Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon’s office "did not talk about how stadium planners would make up the difference." Hunn & Giegerich note opponents of taxpayer-funded stadiums "have argued vehemently that a decade-old law requires separate public votes in St. Louis and St. Louis County before any tax dollars can be used to build new stadiums." The state, city and county currently "each help pay off" nearly $300M in bond debt used to build Edward Jones Dome, with the state paying $12M per year, and the city and county contributing $6M each (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 4/1).
JUST WIN, BABY: In Oakland, Mike Blasky reports the Oakland City Council last night "certified an environmental report for the 800 acres" surrounding the proposed Coliseum City complex. The council also "voted to accept a specific plan for the development and re-zone the area to fit its optimal vision for the site: Three new sports venues, 5,750 homes and nearly 8 million square feet of urban retail and office space with convenient access to BART and the highway." Both steps "were necessary if the city hopes to sign a development deal with the Raiders for a new football stadium." Blasky: "If the Raiders are really interested in Oakland's grand plans to keep the team from leaving the city, there is no more red tape in their way" (OAKLAND TRIBUNE, 4/1).
