We keep being told how eliminating property taxes will mean roads, the fire department, and schools will be unfunded. They tell you so because everyone wants those services, but here is a great example of where property taxes go.
That’s right- Hillsboro county is going to use a billion dollars of taxpayer funds to build a new stadium for the Tamp Bay Rays. That works out to nearly $2,000 per household. They powers that be claim no one will notice, because the billion will come from county reserves. See, you won’t notice how we stole a bunch of money from you so we could pay a bunch of grown men a hundred million apiece to play a child’s game.
Incidentally, the team is worth $1.7 billion, but the taxpayers are expected to build half of the $2.8 billion stadium they will play in. How about instead, we let the taxpayers keep their money, and the team can charge what the traffic will bear for tickets instead of forcing taxpayers to fund your business?
EDITED TO ADD:
If the new field lasts as long as the old one, the stadium will cost $80 million for each year it’s used, or about $1 million per game. There are 25,000 seats in the stadium, meaning the team would have to add $40 to the price of each and every ticket to pay for the stadium themselves. That seems reasonable to me, and if people won’t pay it, then does Tampa really need baseball?
8 Comments
YourAverageJoe · May 4, 2026 at 6:58 am
Thanks for this post!
We here in Houston are facing the same bullshit with the Houston Texans.
We had to buy the NRG stadium for these millionaire negros to play sports ball in and now they want us to buy them a fancy training facility.
Crap like this is why I have come to hate all professional sports.
I wish I could get the taxpayers to buy my truck and tools so I can make a living but hey, I’m White.
Tom235 · May 4, 2026 at 7:31 am
I’m willing to bet the politicians who approve such shenanigans get good seats …
Jim · May 4, 2026 at 12:07 pm
Owners of these clubs don’t want average Americans to attend. Look at the prices they charge for vending.
Danny · May 4, 2026 at 4:50 pm
I get your point. However, I think it’s not as cut and dried as it appears. The sports franchise will add to the local economy (and have a ripple effect to nearby markets) in ways that aren’t immediately apparent. Yeah they could add $40 to each seat and cover the stadium. But don’t forget all the local businesses that day-to-day survival is boosted by people spending time and money in the area of the stadium. In other words, the 40 bucks is consumed in the local economy. Maybe I’m wrong.
Divemedic · May 4, 2026 at 5:11 pm
Then those businesses can kick in. Im opposed to handing tax money out to others whether its EBT or a free stadium.
Birdog357 · May 5, 2026 at 6:45 am
Those businesses would have more money if they didn’t have to pay for the stupid stadium….
McChuck · May 5, 2026 at 6:06 am
$112,000 per seat. They had better be really nice seats.
As far as the total price goes – how much of the construction cost goes to local construction businesses? How much of it goes directly back to the county (and state) in the form of taxes, fees, and permits? This is the perspective of the politicians who live by skimming off the money sloshing around. Whenever you hear about something like this, look to see how many local politicians have ownership stakes in construction companies.
Danny · May 7, 2026 at 5:37 pm
No question. Local politicians have stakes in real estate, construction, site development—the list goes on. How do you think they afford the Gulfstream?
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