Goldwater takes another shot at Phoenix Coyotes deal
Mar 31, 2011, 5:37 PM | Updated: 6:45 pm
Comparing Glendale to New York City and the Phoenix Coyotes to the New York Yankees seems a little absurd. Interestingly enough it seems like the people making the comparison has cornered the market on absurdity lately.
On Thursday the watchdog group the Goldwater Institute, who is contesting the constitutionality of the city of Glendale’s deal with potential new owner Matthew Hulsizer, released an opinion piece on their website. The piece compared the bonds Glendale is offering Hulsizer in exchange for parking revenue to the ones New York City offered the Yankees.
Yankee Stadium parking revenue is 40 percent below projections even though the team continues to lead the league in attendance. The ball club didn’t even bring in $1.5 million to cover the $7 million debt payment for the parking bonds, and the firm that operates the parking owes the city $17 million in back rent and taxes.
Seems like a bit of a stretch.
Of course parking revenue at the new Yankee stadium is down. In the Bronx, the borough where the stadium is located, there are plenty of additional parking options in the form of other garages and meters and viable public transit options such as the subway system and buses. Fans aren’t forced to park in the government owned lots or to drive a car at all.
Those options just don’t exist in Glendale near Westgate. Making it a moot point.
Fans can’t forgo getting into their cars and take a train or bus ride to the arena. None exist. Especially when a majority of fans live in the east or central parts of the Valley. With them forced to drive to events, they can’t park their cars anywhere other than the designated lots which Glendale will control either.
Westgate is set up in a way that only allows for fans to park in specific areas without any lots, structures, meters or even neighborhoods in the near vicinity to take away from the revenue. With the venue’s parking self-contained, the city won’t have to worry about a significant drop in projected revenue due to parking options (attendance is probably the only issue you could reasonably point to).
Desperate times call for desperate measures. Apparently the Goldwater Institute is getting beyond desperate if they’re turning to arguments like these.
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