We in Santa Clara do things very well. We're fiscally prudent and we make decisions based on consensus building and principles, not politics.
The decision on building a stadium in Santa Clara — and the larger issue of how to develop the entertainment district — must shun politics, and be made in adherence to our principles of fiscal prudence, consensus building and democracy.
Let's examine these three important principles in detail.
Fiscal Prudence.
I used the 49ers waterfall financial model (slides 15 - 17 of 49ers Proposal) to see what it would take for Santa Clara to break even after 30 years. The Stadium Authority would have to net over $15M annually in non-49ers events just to break even. By the 49ers' own calculations, this would be almost impossible.
It was really interesting to see how this profits the 49ers. In addition to their football profits, the 49ers would get a cut of non-49ers events amounting to over $45M over the life of the stadium.
Wow. The stadium is looking pretty good for the 49ers... Their rent goes down. They get a high tech ballpark & guaranteed capital improvements — increasing their market value significantly. Plus, they make an additional $45M off the backs of Santa Clara — approximately $450 per person.
Sorry Sally, no new bicycle for you, Jed York needs a new yacht.
Consensus building.
A recent CBS5 poll showed that 55% of Santa Clara residents oppose building a new stadium if it meant using public funds. Rather than forcing through a stadium proposal that has so little public support, the city must build consensus on how to best develop the entertainment district.
Building consensus requires effort to develop a proposal that will be an asset to the community. It must bring in a diversity of venues that will ensure high utilization, attract a broad cross-section of the community and keep a large percentage of revenues in the city.
The 49ers proposal achieves none of these goals. By all estimates, the stadium will be utilized between 10 and 30 days out of the year. The remaining 335 days will leave the district with a dark hole that could gobble up every man, woman and child in Milpitas, and still have room for dessert.
Big empty places are scary. Only the foolhardy, the drunks and shady characters will find this behemoth an attraction.
Democracy vs. Politics.
The 49ers have politicized this discussion with their paid consultants and slick sales pitches to City Council and to the community.
Stop the politics. Insist on putting this critical issue before the people on a general election ballot.
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