Funny you should mention Great America, and their parent company Cedar Fair.
Back in January, the Santa Clara Mayor and City Council formally adopted a set of principles for evaluating the 49ers stadium proposal. These included a requirement that Cedar Fair agree in writing to not interfere with the stadium feasibility study, and that this agreement was required prior to pursuing discussions with the 49ers.
Here it is September, with no agreement in sight. The Mayor is saying that Cedar Fair's opposition is "the most substantive" problem delaying the feasibility study. However, "We haven't come up against one obstacle, or one factor, that violates our principles for going forward," Mahan said. (SJMN, Sept 4 2007)
Hmm... I think we have a touch of selective amnesia going on here.
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2 comments:
Cedar Fair has remained neutral which is not interfering with the feasibility study. It is a complex project and time has to pass for all parties involved to come to an agreement.
I commend city council and staff for working with both the team and Cedar Fair and being patient.
It is better to study all aspects of a proposed deal than to rush it and make huge mistakes. If the city, team and Cedar Fair reach an agreement that is beneficial to all then the time it took to make a good sound decision will not matter.
Thanks for your thoughtful comments. We absolutely agree that careful study is essential before embarking on a project of this magnitude. $222 million is a lot of money by anyone's standards, and nobody is interested in risking mistakes by rushing it through.
For just those reasons, the City agreed upon some very well-considered guidelines for this project back in January. Those guidelines explicitly state that a written agreement with Cedar Fair must be in place before beginning any discussions with the 49ers.
The guidelines are here:
http://www.ci.santa-clara.ca.us/pdf/collateral/January_9_Agenda_Report_re_Proposed_49ers_Stadium.pdf
Here is the actual verbiage regarding Cedar Fair:
7. Great America Theme Park/Cedar Fair must agree to and cooperate with any proposed stadium project sited on existing City-owned lands leased or committed to them. The City/Agency requires a written acknowledgment from Cedar Fair stating that they will not assert business interference or negative effects by ongoing feasibility studies/discussions between the City/Agency and the San Francisco 49ers pertaining to a proposed stadium to be located in their leased parking lot. This agreement must be obtained prior to pursuing discussions with the 49ers.
Unfortunately, it appears the City may have abandoned these guidelines -- Cedar Fair voiced disapproval of the project in June, after numerous discussions with the 49ers had already taken place.
Here is a reference to Cedar Fair's opposition:
http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_6157079
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