The Jaguars aren’t the only pro sports team interested in a new stadium. The Chicago Bears, Buffalo Bills, Kansas City Chiefs, Tennessee Titans and Tampa Bay Rays all have deals in various stages of development.
Our news partners at the Jacksonville Daily Record broke down the deals those teams have brokered with their respective cities, some of which sailed through without a hitch, while others are stuck in limbo.
Starting in Florida, the Rays have been talking about a new stadium for years.
At one point, there was talk of moving it from St. Petersburg to Tampa. Now, the team wants to build a new stadium in St Pete’s historic Gas Plant District.
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The St. Pete city council is currently examining the $1.3 billion plan with $600 million coming from taxpayers.
Despite winning the Super Bowl, the fate of stadium renovations for the Kansas City Chiefs is still uncertain.
Last month, voters rejected a 40-year sales tax increase to fund $2 billion in upgrades to the Chiefs’ stadium, as well as a new stadium for the Royals. This has led to speculation that the Chiefs could relocate to another city, potentially even Kansas City, Kansas.
The Bears’ project is still in the early stages. The team unveiled renderings last month of a new stadium to replace Soldier Field that would cost $4.7 billion with taxpayers funding half.
The team hopes to break ground next summer.
The Tennesee Titans and Buffalo Bills have already broken ground on their new stadiums.
The Titans’ project is expected to cost around $2 billion with a quarter from the state of Tennessee and $760 million from Nashville.
The Bills’ stadium will cost a little less at $1.5 billion with 55% of the funding coming from taxpayers. The Buffalo Bills are getting $850 million in taxpayer contributions ($650 million from the state of New York and $200 million from Erie County).
The big difference between those and Jacksonville is that the state of Florida doesn’t help subsidize pro sports teams stadiums or arenas.