Since 1987, the San Francisco 49ers have paid a pittance for the 11.2 acres of prime Silicon Valley real estate under their Training Center on Centennial Boulevard. Their payment last year? About $26,000.
The Hyatt Hotel just up the street paid nearly $1,500,000 for 1.8 acres.
At a debate at the Muslim Community Association debate on Sunday afternoon, Mayor Patricia Mahan made the breathtaking claim that this "sweetheart lease" (her words) was justified because the 49ers contributed "hundreds of millions of dollars" to improve the infrastructure in and around the Training Center site.
However, I have before me the 1987 lease for the Training Center, and I believe that it shows the Mayor's claim to be simply untrue:
- Escrow Agreement of February 12th, 1987, page 3, Paragraph B: "...public funds have been budgeted for and allocated to the construction of Centennial Boulevard as a two (2) lane....half street..."
- Escrow Agreement of February 12th, 1987, page 3, Paragraph C: "All connections for utilities, including without limitation storm sewers, sanitary sewers, water, electric, telephone and gas (the "Utilities"), have been made available to the Property boundary at no cost to LESSEE other than the development fees..."
So, in fact, our city - and not the 49ers - made the Centennial Blvd. infrastructure a reality.
Yes. Sunday's gathering was a debate, not a City Council meeting. But as electors, taxpayers and ratepayers in Santa Clara, we're entitled to far more honesty on the issue of the Training Center lease than we've been getting. Material misrepresentations such as the ones we heard on Sunday - from an elected official, no less - don't add to our understanding. Rather, they make us less trustful of the institutions that are supposed to be looking out for us.
We've been subsidizing the 49ers since 1987 with that Training Center lease. However, the five Stadium Boosters on our City Council, instead of correcting that inequity, turn right around and demand that we extend it with Measure J!
We urge all Santa Clarans: Please stop the Stadium Subsidies - all of them.
Please VOTE NO on Measure J on June 8th.
Thanks for all of your support,
Bill Bailey, Treasurer,
Santa Clara Plays Fair
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4 comments:
I was at the MCA forum. Mahan admitted that the training center is a sweetheart deal, not once but twice. She also said her father was on the council when that deal was made. The so-called "city leaders" gave away the store once. Now they want to do it again?!
The Bush Doctrine: "If you're going to lie, lie big and lie often, until they believe you."
How much has the city spent studying the 49ers proposals?
I was there also. The mayor is beyond belief. The is no connection between her words and the truth. That she is representing the SF 49ers and not the City of Santa Clara is beyond obvious. The 49er like the lease on their training facility and got greedy and want more. The mayor is being her best to give it to them.
"How much has the city spent studying the 49ers proposals?"
$1,950,000 of Redevelopment Agency cash has been spent on lawyers and consultants since April of 2007.
But this ~$2M does not include a single penny of our City Staff's time spent on the stadium "deal" - it includes only outside consultants' fees.
Please contact me at info@santaclaraplaysfair.org if you would like a copy of this summary. I took all of that data from our City Council Agenda Reports.
Best regards,
Bill Bailey, Treasurer,
Santa Clara Plays Fair
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