The decision to publicly subsidize construction of a baseball park always is chancy. Despite all the hype about how much it will help the local economy, taxpayers virtually never get their money back.
But that doesn't mean cities should automatically abandon the idea. In Provo's case, a new multipurpose stadium, a hot topic for debate these days, could be used for a lot of functions other than just home games for a minor-league team. In other words, the community could benefit in ways that might justify the expense.In any event, the public has a keen interest in the matter. The folks in charge of selecting a site for the stadium would be well-served by making their deliberations open.
An investigatory baseball committee composed of city, business and community leaders has been meeting behind closed doors to winnow the list of prospective sites. No one has yet come up with a justifiable reason for the secrecy. The chair of the committee told this newspaper that the public shouldn't worry because the committee has no power to sign any contracts. But if the committee's work is so benign, what reason would it have to do its work in secret?
Granted, any final decision on a permanent site would have to come from the City Council and take place in an open forum. The trouble is, it may be difficult at that point to shake the impression that much of the important work had been finished already away from the spotlight. Real estate negotiations may legitimately be closed under state law, but everything else at this point should be open and above board.
Perhaps this wouldn't be such an issue if not for the way local governments nationwide have bought into the myth of professional sports. They rely on the promise of multipliers -- economic gobbledygook for the theory of how a stadium generates business and jobs around it. Several credible studies in recent years have debunked this myth. Robert Baade of Lake Forest College, for instance, did a study that showed major league stadiums do little more than rearrange business that already exists in a city. Two other economists, Denis Coates and Brad Humphreys of the University of Maryland, found that publicly subsidized stadiums actually hurt local economies.
As far as Provo's situation is concerned, city leaders ought to be required to read "Minor league baseball and local economic development," by Arthur T. Johnson, a political science professor at the University of Maryland Baltimore County. It reaches similar conclusions and includes several pertinent case studies.
Despite all this, civic leaders seem easily blinded by the lure of stadium lights. The facts seldom are aired.
Provo may indeed have need for a multipurpose stadium. For the folks who enjoy baseball, having a minor league team in town would be a nice amenity. But it must be remembered that people who aren't fans would be forced to pay for it, as well. The city needs to approach this project with a clear understanding of what it would get and how much it would cost. The only way to do that is with the help of full public scrutiny.