House Bill 2704, which was passed by the Arizona Legislature and signed by Gov. Katie Hobbs to fund part of the 30-year renovations planned for Chase Field in downtown Phoenix, called for the creation of a governing board to oversee the ballpark updates. That board is now selected, empaneled and held its first meeting earlier this week.
HB2704 allows the board to manage a fund with a 30-year timeline that will be supported by a mix of income and sales tax revenues. The legislation proved highly controversial. Some viewed it as a public subsidy for a private sports organization, while others contested the loss of funding previously dedicated to public education and road improvements.
Under the law’s provisions, taxpayer funding is capped at $500M. However, an inflation adjustment clause could increase the maximum to more than $1B over the total funding period.
Board members include:
- Sunbelt Holdings Chairman John Graham (Chairman);
- Andrew Cohn, who has been an “intermediary” between Maricopa County and the Arizona Diamondbacks;
- Restauranteur Teddy Myers;
- Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego;
- State Sen. Mitzi Epstein;
- Maricopa County Assistant Manager Zach Schira, and
- Arizona Diamondbacks President and CEO Derrick Hall (non-voting).
In its first public meeting, the board set a biweekly meeting schedule and established members’ lengths of term. The next items to be discussed will be the appointment of an executive director, addressing the stadium’s infrastructure needs and starting lease negotiations with the team. (Source)
