The Arizona Diamondbacks appear to all the time be on the sting of attainable relocation. It’s because the proprietor of the Diamondbacks, Ken Kendrick, refuses to make any sizeable funding within the workforce with his own money. Each few years, Kendrick will subject a risk of leaving except he will get extra taxpayer cash.
In 2016, Kendrick demanded over $250 million in taxpayer money for pointless upgrades. The county identified to the workforce in an e-mail that every one the so-called upgrades weren’t the duty of the county below the lease settlement. So Kendrick pulled the relocation card and talked about how the Diamondbacks “might seek a way to leave the stadium before its current contract with the county ends.”
In 2017, the Arizona Diamondbacks sued Maricopa County, the county the place their ballpark is situated. Within the lawsuit, the Diamondbacks claimed the county was not fulfilling its obligations below their lease settlement. Based on the workforce, the county owed the workforce over $200 million for upgrades; nevertheless; they may not pay as a result of the county was not correctly funding the ballpark fund. The county famous its skill to verify $50 million in current ballpark enhancements and the ample funding of the ballpark fund. The workforce requested the courtroom to allow them to out of their lease settlement in order that they may speak to 3rd events about financing for their ballpark repairs and upgrades.
Nonetheless, in 2018, the county settled the lawsuit as a substitute of combating it out for years. It was agreed by the county that the workforce may search for a brand new dwelling right away upon dropping the lawsuit. Now, the workforce may “take control of stadium maintenance” and spend $35M on varied ballpark fixes and upgrades…all of the whereas getting $20M again as “reimbursement for repairs.” Because the Defector wrote in an article in regards to the Diamondbacks, as soon as the workforce received management of the ballpark, they “did not do the repairs they claimed they needed.” Total, the county was joyful to be “released from any obligation to pay for further repairs.”
Let’s simply overlook that the majority the ballpark prices had been the workforce’s duty, as clearly specified by the lease settlement. Let’s not overlook that the workforce persistently brings in a number of hundred million dollars every year in revenue. This isn’t a shock whenever you think about that the Diamondbacks pay no lease and pay no property taxes. To no one’s shock, virtually all previous and present ballpark discussions have been “behind closed doors” in order that the general public is aware of as little as attainable till the final second. Kendrick likes to proclaim how he “wants the public to have access to everything” but appears to provide the general public virtually zero entry to any a part of his enterprise.
The county was joyful at this level. The workforce now has “agreed to pay for and manage all future repairs.” Not fairly. In 2021, the Diamondbacks once more cried poverty. This time, the county agreed to outline the ballpark as a particular tax district. This allowed the workforce to “charge an extra nine percent tax on anything sold (at the ballpark).”
Three years later, in 2024, Arizona lawmakers authorized a invoice that permits for collected gross sales taxes for use for ballpark renovations. Home Invoice 2704 specifically allowed for sales and revenue taxes that had been generated at Chase Area to be taken out of the county’s normal fund and put right into a pot that may assist finance an improve to the workforce’s ballpark. Because the Arizona Mirror famous, it took not even a number of years for the Diamondbacks to return “to the state Capitol with both hands out, asking for even more taxpayer money.” This invoice capped the native authorities from contributing greater than $500M from this funding supply.
The Diamondbacks proprietor loves to inform everybody how a lot he places into the workforce, however discover how we get no precise affirmation or proof that these contributions exist? Kendrick has claimed that passing Home Invoice 2704 would permit the workforce to spend $250M of their very own cash on ballpark upgrades. Then why does the invoice comprise “no enforceable requirement…that the Diamondbacks even pay a dime for the stadium’s improvements”? In actual fact, the Diamondbacks claimed the ballpark was costing them a minimal of $20M per yr in repairs. But, they could never find the time to truly present anybody this engineering report that they claimed existed.
“The proposed legislation says the Diamondbacks ‘will contribute at the very least $250,000,000 of the skilled baseball franchise group’s personal monies‘ to improve the 27-year-old stadium. However that large, shiny quantity is one the general public can take solely on religion. The legislature can not compel the workforce to spend its personal cash, however solely put in writing that the workforce has promised to take action” —Phoenix New Times, 05/08/25
Why did the state conform to this deal final yr? To maintain the workforce. Articles repeatedly pressured this level earlier than they really authorized the invoice.
Maricopa County Board Chairman Thomas Galvin acknowledged in an interview that he wished this invoice to go so the county may “keep the Diamondbacks in place.” Diamondbacks Workforce President Derrick Corridor instructed native officers that this invoice would permit the workforce to “stay downtown and play downtown.” Corridor additionally emailed season ticket holders asking them to “Help Us Keep the D-backs in Arizona.” This e-mail additionally included an internet site that had issues on it that acknowledged, “Is it really possible that the Diamondbacks could leave Arizona? After the approval of this invoice, media retailers like AZFamily.com wrote, “Arizona Diamondbacks secure home at Chase Field for next 30 years.”
Then we lastly arrive at in the present day. Just lately, a number of workforce officers have been issuing public statements that seem to suggest that the workforce needs much more taxpayer cash. For the reason that lease settlement between the workforce and county expires after the 2028 season, the workforce is seemingly utilizing this as a cause for more taxpayer money to be given to them.
This week, the workforce opened as much as being shocked at how a lot it prices to restore and improve gear at their ballpark. The workforce admitted that the price of current repairs to issues, like a brand new air conditioner, was “much higher than we thought.” That isn’t it both, because the workforce additionally says that there have to be infrastructure fixes that can price “hundreds of millions of dollars.” Fortunately, the workforce has “pledged to invest hundreds of millions of dollars” for repairs and different issues.
The workforce can also use a few of the $500M given to the workforce final yr. However possibly the $500M isn’t sufficient to cowl all of the ballpark bills. Oh no! At a current assembly with the media, the Diamondbacks proprietor admitted he hoped that the $500M plan “will generate the proceeds to support the needed investment.” Effectively, if it doesn’t, the workforce can simply pay for it themselves…proper? Not fairly. An article by Sports activities Illustrated highlighted that the proprietor left unsaid whether or not the workforce’s pledged portion of the restore and renovation prices would also be used in this situation.
