What is it about professional sports teams that makes their owners want to screw the public? They’re businesses that make hundreds of millions of dollars, with some of the highest paid employees in the world, yet they always want to play their games on the public dole. From the Seattle Times:

Sonics owner Clay Bennett doesn’t want a public vote on taxes to pay for the team’s proposed new $500 million Renton arena because the outcome would probably be the same as most of the team’s games this year: a loss.

That’s exactly what it would be, and should be. The Sonics tried to extort a few hundred million out of the City of Seattle with the threat that they’d leave if they didn’t get it. The people of Seattle voted against them, so they decided to move across the lake and try it there.

In an interview Wednesday with The Seattle Times editorial board, Bennett said he hopes politicians will show “leadership” to keep the Sonics and Storm in the state by approving the taxes without a public referendum.

The type of “leadership” Clay Bennett wants the politicians to show is the same sort of “leadership” they showed several years ago, when the people of the State of Washington said “NO” to funding a new stadium for the Mariners. The “leadership” the legislature showed then was to go into “emergency” session to come up with new taxes against the express will of the people.

Voters have never let politicians forget that episode.

Still, there are some people in the legislature that want the Sonics in their hometown enough that they’ll come up with any excuse to try to thwart the will of the people.

“I’m not sure what their motive is,” said Prentice, D-Renton. “Why have a public vote on a tax the people are already paying, and paying quite willingly?”

Although the Sonics’ plan would not increase taxes being paid by county residents, it would extend the life of some taxes scheduled to expire and divert some taxes that could otherwise pay for general state services.

Isn’t that enough of a reason to have a public vote?

Prentice said she believes any political fallout from approving the tax package would be “very positive.”

Keep believing that. If you do, maybe we’ll see a Republican in that seat after the next election. Somehow in this ultra-leftist state I doubt it, but enough of these outrages and it will eventually happen.

The Sonics proposal, Senate Bill 5986, sponsored by Prentice, would raise $300 million for construction of the Sonics arena and an additional $123 million for arts groups and for future maintenance at Safeco Field.

An additional $200 million needed for the $500 million Sonics arena would be split by Sonics owners and the city of Renton, Bennett said.

Bennett has refused to specify the owners’ contribution and said Wednesday some of it could come from selling naming rights to the arena or a ticket tax on premium seats.

Yet another tax? On top of the other taxes funding this? Give me a break. We already have three “major professional sports teams” here in Washington. All of them “can’t survive” without public funding. Meanwhile our roads are falling apart and Seattle is closing schools. $423 million won’t solve those problems, but it could fix quite a few potholes in our roads or buy a few more computers for classrooms.

At the editorial board interview Wednesday, Bennett appeared dejected at times and said the arena plan needed support soon from top political and business leaders to have a chance.

He said the public needs to think about the arena as a community asset that would have more than 200 events a year, including basketball games, concerts, conventions and possibly a National Hockey League team.

“I’m troubled by the fact that I seem to be the only one who wants it to happen,” he said.

If he can’t get an arena deal this year, Bennett has said he may move the Sonics to Oklahoma City, his hometown.

“I personally hope we can get the building built, but if we don’t, I’m OK, too,” he said.

If we don’t, I’m OK too. It’s long past time that professional sports organizations were forced to make good on their extortionist threats against the people of Washington. Don’t let the door hit you on the backside on your way out of town Mr. Bennett.

Cross posted to Perri Nelson’s Website

Trackback URI | Comments RSS