Scene Senior Writer Sam Allard will moderate a Cuyahoga County Progressive Caucus panel on stadium financing Tuesday, Oct. 19 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. asking a simple question: “Who Really Benefits When You Pay for Stadium Deals?”
Panelists for the event will include West Virginia University Economics Professor and renowned stadium finance expert Dr. Brad Humphreys, Activist Attorney Peter Pattakos and Public Budget Analysis Advocate William Tarter, Jr. Audience questions will also be taken.
The CCPC promises a “rigorous look with expert analysis by local and national experts of whether or not these deals are what the public is promised.”
The topic is once again timely as Cleveland city council and Cuyahoga County council undertake hearings on the proposed (and all but assuredly guaranteed-to-pass) Progressive Field upgrade deal, which will see some quarter billion dollars of taxpayer money handed over for stadium projects.
Deliberated and concocted in private without public comment or input, the deal’s $285 million public outlay has received little of the scrutiny or outcry the Q Deal generated.
Registration for the virtual Zoom event is free and can be done here.
County and city council members have been invited to attend.
Catch up on city council’s first meeting on the Progressive Field deal here.
This article appears in Oct 6-19, 2021.
