Stadium Authority agrees to new memorandum with Yankees

SCRANTON – At a public hearing on Monday night held at West Scranton High School, Lackawanna County Commissioners and the Multipurpose Stadium Authority confirmed what many in the area have speculated – the county will be selling the Triple-A baseball franchise to the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees for $14.6 million.

Also announced were plans to make $40 million in renovations to PNC Field as well as new terms of a memorandum of understanding expected to be passed by the authority on Tuesday, including a lease term that would guarantee Triple-A baseball in the county for no less than 30 seasons.

The county’s chief baseball negotiator, attorney Steven Labovitz of McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP, gave a brief history of baseball in the area and outlined the benefits of the new memorandum of understanding, which will be drafted by the county into a full contract if passed by the authority.

The benefits include a new lease term of at least 30 Triple-A baseball seasons; potentially two 10-year lease renewal options as long as fair market value is agreed upon, extending the possible lease term to 50 years; an annual rent payment of $750,000, up from $125,000; additional responsibilities for SWB Yankees; detailed repurchase rights; all development rights for property will remain under the exclusive control of the authority; SWB Yankees must provide at least one-year notice if they wish to relocate, up from 60 days notice; capital repair costs will be shared by the county and SWB Yankees; the establishment of a capital improvement fund; and multi-purpose use would continue to be required.

Craig Schmitt, the stadium architect, explained that the proposed $40 million in renovations to the stadium will include a new “open concourse” layout with tiered seating and walkways that surround the entire playing field, eliminating parts of the upper deck in favor of a more up-close, “family friendly” design. There will also be a new bullpen, scoreboard, lighting, and entry plaza. Ryan Hottenstein, the county’s financial advisor, said that funding would come from $25 million in state funds secured by Governor Ed Rendell, an increase from his originally promised $20 million, plus $15 million from the authority’s sale of the franchise.

During the public comments portion of the hearing, local citizens and business owners expressed both their disapproval and their praise of the franchise sale and the proposed stadium renovations. Attorney John McGee, a former Stadium Authority solicitor who negotiated the contract to bring the Triple-A franchise to Northeast Pennsylvania over 20 years ago, said he continues to oppose the sale of the franchise, and he questioned the sale price and details of the negotiations.

Former county commissioner Joseph Corcoran also opposed the sale of the franchise, saying that court approval should be needed to sell a county asset and a request for proposals should be made. He accused the current commissioners and the authority of not keeping up on maintenance of the stadium, and he questioned how much tickets and concessions would go up, which he believes would further alienate crowds.

“From the best of my knowledge, what I’ve been told over the last few years, maintenance has been woefully inadequate,” Corcoran said.

Commissioners Michael Washo and Corey O’Brien stressed that the county is out of options due to financial constraints, but that the terms of the new memorandum of understanding are much better than the previous 2007 agreement.

“We have to do something now,” O’Brien said, adding that poltically, it may not be the “right thing to do,” but “tough decisions” must be made. He explained that the county is out of money and cannot afford the renovations desperately needed.

“There is no money, and there is no revenue.”

Washo admitted that he didn’t want to sell the franchise, but he and O’Brien were not aware of the full extent of the stadium’s problems and costs before taking office. He said that they “must act now” before the federal funds, which are time sensitive, go towards another project outside the area.

“I think that a good was done here by the negotiating team,” Washo said. “I think this memorandum of understanding…shows that we have carefully crafted agreement to build upon, and if this community wants baseball going forth into the future, we’re going to continue to have baseball.”