I listen to NJ 101.5-FM in the morning. I haven't a particular fondness for the talk-radio format, and even so, the morning show has so many other balls in the air that, on average, the host takes about seven calls an hour. Unfortunately, music stations fail to wake me in the morning. The jibber-jabber gets it done, and once I'm up, it's nice to hear the traffic and weather.
Their news department is usually reliable as well. Lately, though, they have a peculiar bee in their bonnet over the new proposed stadium for the New York Giants. They don't like the idea of the state assuming the debt on the current field; fair enough, but it's simply an old obligation whose bill has come due, and not a new tax on the citizen (unless Crappy New Jersey™ pulls another in a lengthy series of fast ones). My real issue with the coverage is that it implies that the Giants are screwing over the Sports and Exposition Authority.
It took me ten seconds to Google "publicly-funded sports stadiums" and another five minutes to scroll through my 800 results to find this. If you haven't the time for it all just take quick glance at page 19, the table listing the 26 new stadia built between 1998 and 2003, translated to 2003 dollars. Only TWO of those stadia were paid for wholly by the teams. The taxpayer put up part of the scratch for 18. They paid the entire cost six times, either through floated bond issues, new fees, or an actual tax hike. Just in the NFL, check the invaluable nflvenueinfo.com and details will pour out at you.
The Giants, on the other hand, will build their entire stadium themselves and pay $6.3 million a year in rent. It's a good deal for the team, of course, when you factor in the state's assumed costs to build the necessary roads, but in the sports world, this is the best you're going to get.
This post, by the way, took me 26 minutes from log-on to post, and I draw neither a salary nor advertisers.
UPDATE - while typing, I just heard the anchor say that 14% came out to "1-in-6." Not a good day for 101.5-FM, apparently. 14% is less than 1-in-7.
2 comments:
I just can't stand 101.5; 'chime time' my ass.
thanks for the stadium info; that's handy data
My pleasure. I just get tired of hearing about how Wellington Mara is trying to screw Jersey. It's total hokum - the man's been in the same business for 80 years, I think he knows that a good business deal is good for all parties concerned.
Regarding 101.5? I enjoy Dennis & Judi most. They were at the Official Diner of the Hive for one of their shows a few months ago and I missed it, which made me grumbly. Gearhart's OK (again, it's mostly to wake me up in the AM, never easy). The rest of the talk-jocks are certainly not my style.
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