Amid all the controversy swirling around public investment in professional sports stadiums, an interesting clause has emerged in the paperwork preceding the Jacksonville Jaguars renovation of EverBank Stadium into the so-called "Stadium of the Future."
As reported by WJXT in Jacksonville, the city could get all of its money back from the Stadium of the Future investment if the Jaguars choose to move within 14 years of stadium renovations, according to the latest draft of the proposed deal between the team and the city.
Amid all the controversy swirling around public investment in professional sports stadiums, an interesting clause has emerged in the paperwork preceding the Jacksonville Jaguars renovation of EverBank Stadium into the so-called "Stadium of the Future."
As reported by WJXT in Jacksonville, the city could get all of its money back from the Stadium of the Future investment if the Jaguars choose to move within 14 years of stadium renovations, according to the latest draft of the proposed deal between the team and the city.
The deal includes a 30-year lease, so the city could seek damages if the team breaks that lease and leaves before the halfway point, with repayment reduced each year past the 15-year mark, WJXT reported.
WJXT, citing reporting by the Jacksonville Daily Record, futher noted that the agreement also allows the city to go after the Jags for the cost of demolishing the stadium should the team relocate.
The overall cost split between the city and the Jaguars hasn’t changed -- each would contribute $625 million toward construction. The city would also put up an additional $150 million for maintenance, renovation prep and to make the stadium usable by the team during construction, according to WJXT.
Previous documents made public on the Stadium of the Future deal spell out how the city could spend that $775 million. The City Council still has to approve the deal, and outgoing council president Ron Salem says the goal is to vote by June 25.
Mike Weinstein, the city’s chief negotiator, said he doesn’t expect a lot of pushback from the city council.
“Basically, it reflects what we’ve been talking about. It just takes a long time to get it to where you think of everything that could possibly happen over the 30 years, and try to resolve it in the document rather than having it resolved at the time. And that’s what lawyers are doing,” Weinstein said.
The most controversial part of the agreement is the community benefits agreement that calls for the city to spend $150 million outside the stadium on parks and the Eastside neighborhoods, and calls for the Jaguars to give an equal amount over the same years of the lease.
The Jaguars have been holding community huddles where the public can give input on the deal, and the final two of the original 14 planned are scheduled for this week.
