The Broncos and CO taxpayers will spend $400.8M to
build the team's new football stadium, which is $40.8M more
than the $360M price "estimated when voters ... approved a
sales tax of a penny on every $10 purchase to pay for the
stadium," according to Ann Imse of the ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS.
The Broncos' share of construction costs increases to $112M,
28% of the cost of the stadium, "up from" the 25% "required
by law." The funds will be paid to the Denver Stadium
District "up front, in cash, in the next several weeks."
CO taxpayers' share of the cost "will rise" from $260M to
$289M, an 11% increase which stadium district officials say
is legal because "the ballot language allowed them to spend
another" $75M on top of the $260M in bonds. Imse wrote that
the "difficulty of building around McNichols Sports Arena
and Mile High Stadium while they remain in use" and an
increase on "rising construction costs" are reasons for the
cost overruns (ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS, 7/10). In Denver, Julia
Martinez wrote the developers of the Broncos stadium
disclosed that construction of the facility "will carry a
'guaranteed' maximum" price tag of $364.2M, up from an
"earlier estimated figure" of $360M (DENVER POST, 7/10).
