Hamilton County (Ohio) Commissioners believed that FC Cincinnati "should play at Paul Brown Stadium but were rebuffed" in a call yesterday to make the case to MLS, according to Chris Wetterich of the CINCINNATI BUSINESS COURIER. FC Cincinnati President & GM Jeff Berding had previously said that Paul Brown Stadium would "not be an acceptable venue." Now, the stadium debate "will shift to the Cincinnati City Council after Thanksgiving." An initial vote on Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley’s proposal is "scheduled in council’s budget committee on Monday, with a final potential vote coming Nov. 29" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 11/21). In Cincinnati, Scott Wartman notes MLS prefers new teams to "have a soccer-only stadium." Both the city and county have "not offered" the $75M FC Cincinnati wants in public infrastructure for a soccer stadium. The county has "offered to build a 1,000-space parking garage" for $15M. The City of Cincinnati "has offered" $37M. FC Cincinnati ownership "wanted the county government to use" $2.8M left over annually from its hotel tax to pay for the stadium infrastructure. County commissioners have "opposed using the hotel tax, saying it should go to other needs, such as the convention center." Hamilton County Commissioner Todd Portune said that the county "would let the city use its portion of leftover hotel tax money toward the stadium." Portune added that the city "could use the revenue to borrow" against $20M in bonds to pay for infrastructure (CINCINNATI.com, 11/20).
DEVIL IN THE DETAILS: In Cincinnati, Jason Williams notes FC Cincinnati's bid is "due in to MLS early next month, so there's still a little time for Berding to salvage this." But it is "going to take a drastic pivot from a public relations debacle that's been months in the making." Berding "still hasn't handed" out the team's plan in writing, "even after the whole thing exploded publicly last week." The team wants $70-75M to "support the stadium," but it "hasn't publicly rolled out a substantial plan." Berding has given a "vague overview of what the club needs to build a stadium in Oakley." The team "would spend" $200M to build the stadium itself (CINCINNATI ENQUIRER, 11/21).
