King County Council Approves $135M For Safeco Field Upgrades

The King County (Wa.) Council voted 5-4 to approve $135M in "taxpayer funds for repairs" at Safeco Field, and a "final vote is set for Sept. 17." A council committee "hotly debated the team's funding request over the five-hour hearing." The Mariners had requested $180M for capital projects, saying that they "would only sign a new 25-year lease to stay at the ballpark if the money was approved." The club's current lease expires at the end of this year. Council opponents "had countered with a plan" to give $25M for Safeco Field and "use the difference to build affordable housing." A majority of council members "settled on what they considered a 'compromise'" (SEATTLE TIMES, 9/6).