Duchess Destroys the St. Louis Rams

You know this sucks the Rams have chosen to move back to Los Angeles. This is going to be such a hit to the city of St. Louis.

Actually St. Louis is better off not having the Rams than giving them another stadium

That has to be pure bullshit how can not having an NFL team be better for a city? I mean think about all the money that will be lost.

Not true. The new stadium deal St. Louis put together had very faulty revenue assumptions. First they assumed ticket prices could be increased as much as 75% in year one. Then every year afterward ticket prices would be increased at a 3% level through 2050. This is despite the fact that ticket prices have only increased $9, or 7%, since 2006. (http://www.statista.com/). The stadium folks also assumed that the stadium would sell around 63,000 seats a game while the current stadium has averaged less than 53,000 of its total 66,000 seats a game. To think he city would find 10,000 more people willing to spend 75% more on tickets per game is frankly insulting. The estimated shortfall in operational costs would exceed $215 Million more than what was initially projected.

I saw that, but the mayor responded saying that number was bullshit and that even if there was a shortfall that money wouldn’t be coming from public money.

He can’t guarantee that. Besides the Mayor’s office said they were “looking at other tools (they) can use that would not raise taxes, but would come from the people who go to the games.” So they would end up pushing an increase in parking fees and ticket charges increasing the burden of going to the game. Or they may just go ahead and use public money anyways without letting the local people vote for it.

What about all the jobs lost? I have heard that’s not great for a local economy.

Not true, in fact, studies have shown that stadiums do more damage to cities than they do to help them. Stanford economist Roger Noll stated “NFL stadiums do not generate significant local economic growth, and the incremental tax revenue is not sufficient to cover any significant financial contribution by the city.” Most jobs created are construction jobs for the initial construction of the stadium then go away. After that, it’s only temporary service jobs that get added for meager wages. An NFL stadium is only run for at least 8-11 games if they do very well, and maybe now and then a Super Bowl gets tossed to them and largely a local attraction. The tourist attraction of the stadium is very minimal in most cases, so it is money that is going to be already spent within the city limits. Besides stadium deals let the team keep most if not all the concession revenue, so it’s not like that money is going into the local economy either. You are better off without an NFL stadium and spending that $200-$300 a game you spend on tickets and food going out to a real local restaurant or shopping at a local boutique where that money has an actual impact on your local economy. In fact, some economists have suggested that a major sports team leaving their respective city will have the same net impact as a small to medium sized department store closing.

Well what about growing the area outside the stadium there is a lot of economic benefits for that isn’t there?

Not if the exorbitant stadium increases property values to a level where it prices out local companies and the new stadiums only benefits the folks who own the land and sell it off before the stadium blight takes shape.

Stadium Blight?

Say there is an excellent restaurant you like a few blocks away from the stadium, are you going to go there on a game day or night an event happens? See the traffic congestion and delays spurred on by the events at the stadium have an adverse impact on stores and restaurants in the surrounding area further decreasing money that would have been spent locally and not siphoned off by paying $10 for a liter of cola and $6 for a hot dog.

Losing your sports team is scary and emotionally wrecking, but that’s just it, it is emotional pain. I too would be devastated if the Bears decided to leave Chicago and I don’t even live there. I understand that and empathize with your pain. Financially you are better off as your tax money can be either lowered or better spent on projects that will have a far better positive impact on your community than a sports team like bettering your roads and local infrastructure projects. And if you miss football so much watch a game at Washington University, not a full substitute but still a better impact on your city than the Rams…

Or it will just wait for the new stadium in 3 years and welcome home YOUR ST. LOUIS JAGUARS!!!!