Mariners Ask State For New Stadium

Owners and backers of the Seattle Mariners urged Washington Legislators Monday to approve a tax package to help finance a new stadium, or risk losing the pro baseball team.

The Mariners’ lease at the Kingdome expires in less than two years and the team won’t sign for an extension unless there are firm plans to build a new stadium that would enable the ball club to be profitable, Mariner vice president Paul Isaki told lawmakers.

A business task force appointed by King County Executive Gary Locke is suggesting a public-private partnership to finance a new ballpark with natural turf and a retractable roof. It would seat 45,000, with seats ranging from low-budget to upscale suites. It would include five picnic areas and a restaurant with a view of the field.

The cost is estimated at $250 million, with the Mariners and other private sources expected to cover about a third and public funding the rest. That is a higher percentage of private funding than any other ball club has been required to come up with, said Patricia Steel, spokeswoman for the task force.

The funding plan presented to the House Trade and Economic Development Committee includes:

A new state lottery scratch game conducted four times a year.

A 5 percent admissions tax in King County for sporting events, including the Seattle SuperSonics, but not the Mariners or Seahawks; movies; plays; county fair; and related events.

A new 5 percent county surtax on car rentals.

The stadium construction would be exempt from state sales taxes.

The legislation’s prime sponsor, Rep. Dave Schmidt, R-Bothell, conceded there will be some controversy in partial public funding, but said, “In the long-run, we will gain far more” for the economy and state treasury.

The Mariners, the task force, and the Seattle Chamber of Commerce’s Sports and Events Council have concluded the team cannot be profitable in the all-purpose Kingdome.

“The Mariners simply cannot make money in this building,” and are running up losses of between $12 million and $20 million every year, said Michael Campbell, president of the sports council.

What if…?

If Ken Griffey Jr. could have played a full 1994 season and the pitchers would have cooperated, he would have broken Roger Maris’ single-season home-run record for baseball, Mariners manager Lou Piniella said.

“If they would have pitched to him, I think he would have pumped out another 20 or so,” Piniella said.

Before the strike stopped baseball in its tracks Aug. 12, Griffey, then 24, hit 40 home runs in 111 games. The five-time All-Star became the first Mariner to win a home-run title.

Griffey hit 45 home runs in 156 games in 1993.

Maris hit 61 in 1961.