May 12, 2008
City Council meeting postponed
We've just received word that the San Jose City Council has postponed the vote on the sale of the Airport West property until next Tuesday, May 20.
This means there's no reason for SSV members to attend tomorrow afternoon's meeting. We apologize for any inconvenience that this causes.
Posted by Jay at 07:34 PM | Comments (0)
If the Don says it, Part 2
Don Garber's attendance at the Buck Shaw opener was not without reference to Soccer Silicon Valley and our group's efforts to get the team back and get them a stadium. Pat yourself on the back. You did good.
Posted by Colin at 02:25 PM | Comments (0)
City Council Meeting May 13th
This is a reminder that tomorrow the San Jose City Council will vote on whether to authorize the sale of land at the FMC site to Mr. Wolff and his development partners. It is one more piece in the stadium puzzle, and we need your help to get it done. It's on the 1:30 calendar, item 4.3. Although you never can tell, we would expect them to get to this item not long after the 1:30 p.m. start time. You can park under City Hall.
Posted by Colin at 02:11 PM | Comments (0)
May 11, 2008
Kudos to Pyle, Jussen for Almaden success
The blog sends congratulations to San Jose City Council member Nancy Pyle and Almaden Valley Youth Soccer league president (and founding member of Soccer Silicon Valley) John Jussen on the opening of the new the Leland Sports Field Complex. We know both Councilmember Pyle and the tireless Jussen have put a lot of work into this effort and it's going to pay dividends for generations of Almaden Valley youth. Well done!
Posted by Jay at 12:06 PM | Comments (0)
April 30, 2008
If the Don says it, it must be true
The Mercury News recently asked that before a soccer stadium be built, questions on the long term viability of MLS be answered. Setting aside for a moment whether such questions were asked of other sports leagues as they built stadium after stadium, arena after arena, and ballpark after ballpark with direct tax payer subsidies, let's consider the question.
Undoubtedly such questions were valid 10 years ago when in the Fraser v. MLS antitrust lawsuit there was testimony, from MLS, that it lost $250M in the first five or so years of operation. Now the lawyers among us might understand a context and basis for such testimony - that it may have been expert opinion testimony using darn lies and statistics to show that there cannot be anticompetitive practices if you are anticompetitive - i.e. losing money. Nonetheless, it was spoken, under oath. With three league owners (Anschutz, Hunt, and Kraft), 10 teams, and no stadiums, MLS was not stable if you don't consider the collective wealth of those three owners.
Fast forward 10 years. There are 14 owners with 11 added since 2003. Currently 14 teams, the league will be at sixteen teams in two years. Nine of the current 14 teams play or soon will be playing in soccer specific stadiums. (It can't come soon in enough in Harrison, NJ.) And no discussion on MLS' viability can be complete without mentioning Golden Balls. That his Galaxy (boo!) jersey was the most purchased jersey in any sport in the world at least assures that overstated franchise unmatched worldwide publicity.
And so it was without exaggeration or strained credibility that this week MLS Commissioner Don Garber told the AP that the question is not, "Will MLS Survive?" but "Where will MLS land in the sports landscape?" Since we here in San Jose understand Garber when he talks about the new America, we are confident it will land close to the top of the heap. The hope is that our community, collectively, wants to be a part of that in a deal that on current economic reports not only does not harm the City's general fund, but helps it to the tune of $1.5M - $2M a year on conservative estimates.
Sounds like a win-win to us. Oh, and if you click on the supporters group audio link to the left you can hear the Don give us some love, after mentioning some group called the Sons of John Adams.
Posted by Colin at 08:47 AM | Comments (0)
April 25, 2008
Another Council Vote - Attendance Needed
The San Jose City Council will soon be voting on the terms of the deal to develop the FMC site for a soccer stadium. See the details here. We are seeking confirmation that the hearing will be May 13, 2008 and at what time. Please make plans to go, bring friends, and wear Quakes gear. That way, we'll far out number guys like
this (Scroll Down). Check back for confirmation and further details.
Posted by Colin at 08:48 AM | Comments (0)
April 21, 2008
Let's move forward, Mercury News
We're a bit mystified at yesterday's editorial in the Mercury News. Last November, the paper endorsed Wolff's stadium proposal, saying the following:
Why is this proposal worth all the trouble? Because it may well deliver an extraordinary public benefit that's not attainable any other way: a professional soccer stadium at no public cost.
Yesterday, the paper said this:
The city has passed a policy allowing for a zoning change to secure an "extraordinary public benefit," and a stadium certainly would be that. But traffic and other effects of the housing plan need further study. And the precedent of deciding on zoning based on a payoff rather than the best use of the land remains troubling.
So which is it — are they endorsing the extraordinary public benefit policy or is it too "troubling" to them? They can't have it both ways.
Meanwhile, as the paper is trying to straddle both sides of that fence, the editorial board is also bringing up questions that have already been answered. "Projections of broad economic benefits from the airport and Edenvale developments are lavish, but not all the money goes to the general fund," says the editorial. "Before saying yes, the mayor and council have to be certain that this deal does not worsen the deficit." That's precisely the kind of question that the City of San Jose's recent economic impact report (you'll find the PDF here) was designed to answer. You may remember that report — it was unanimously approved by the City Council last month.
Apparently, the Mercury News doesn't remember that far back, so we'll recap it here. The report estimates the following:
- Economic impact related to the construction of the entire project of over $2.0 billion
- Annual economic impact of the soccer stadium of $62.3 million
- Annual net fiscal impact to the city's general fund between $1.8 and $2.8 million
- Annual net fiscal impact to the city's redevelopment agency of $7.7 to $8.5 million
- Creation of over 14,000 jobs related to construction activity and approximately 5,000 sustained jobs
- Generation of nearly $850,000 annually for arts and cultural programs through the city's transient occupancy tax (i.e., hotel tax)
"Net fiscal impact to the city's general fund between $1.8 and $2.8 million" answers their question, doesn't it?
We're not sure why the folks at the Merc are having such a hard time keeping up with the news — unless, of course, they're relying on their own publication to provide it.
Posted by Jay at 12:32 PM | Comments (1)
April 15, 2008
Stadium deal takes a big step
Today, we've got good news and bad news.
We'll give you the bad news first: a major earthquake is a near certainty in the next 30 years. The good news? A major Earthquakes stadium is a near certainty in the next two years.
Yes, despite the fact that someday the ground may shake beneath it, the big news today is that the "San Jose soccer stadium (is) closer to reality," as the Mercury News puts it.
San Jose and a team of developers have agreed to a $132 million deal that sets the stage for a major league soccer stadium near the airport as early as 2010.Terms of the deal must still be formally approved by the city council next month. But Monday's financial agreement between city officials and Earthquakes owner Lew Wolff and his partners is a giant step toward building the stadium and an accompanying retail, office and hotel project on the 75-acre site on Coleman Avenue.
"If and when we pull it off, it is going to make me feel - well, at my age, that would be a great accomplishment," the 72-year-old Wolff said from his Los Angeles office. "It would cap off a long time of development in San Jose." Wolff developed downtown San Jose's Fairmont and Hilton hotels and also owns the Oakland A's, for whom he is working to build a new stadium in Fremont.
San Jose leaders also cheered the tentative agreement Monday because it would funnel at least $17 million into the city's general fund - which is perennially racked by deficits.
According to terms of the deal, Wolff and his partners would pay $132 million for 66 acres of the former FMC manufacturing plant. Of that, about 18 acres will be set aside for the 18,000-seat soccer stadium and parking.
The city bought the land in 2005 for $81 million.
We're going to pause for a moment to emphasize those numbers. The City of San Jose is currently paying $6 or $7 million a year from its general fund to pay for the purchase of that land. Under the terms of this agreement, not only will the city be able to get out from under those payments, but it will realize a profit of over $50 million on the sale of the property which it first purchased in 2005. That's a 59 percent profit in just three years. We don't know the details, but that sounds like an amazing deal for the city.
It's too early to celebrate, but we're a whole lot closer to that party than we ever have been.
Posted by Jay at 08:46 AM | Comments (4)
