I've never understood why some people are so against any tax dollars going towards a sports arena. A sports arena is very different from any other type of real estate, it will not appreciate and when it reaches the end of its life cycle its worthless. Once the new arena is built, and who knows when that will be, the 'dome will be demolished because it isn't worth anything. Yes, the owners are very wealthy and some people feel that they should pay for it because they can, but they didn't become wealthy by owning a sports franchise. Very few actually see the kind of returns on their investments in sports franchises that they should to make something a sound business decision. They do it because they are fans primarily.
No business organization is going to foot the bill for an entire arena when they are barely making a profit. If having the Flames in Calgary is a net benefit for the citizens in all respects, then public money should go into a new arena. The debate should be how many tax dollars are put into the new arena, not if any should be put in at all.
|