Bengals always mean business!
They might not lead the NFL in wins on the field. Off it, they’re the Lombardi Trophy. They’re pretty much the ’75 Steelers when it comes to...
They might not lead the NFL in wins on the field. Off it, they’re the Lombardi Trophy. They’re pretty much the ’75 Steelers when it comes to lawyering. In the all-important financial shrewdness category, they’re the ’85 Bears.
The team is offering to help revive Hamilton County from its self-inflicted financial coronary, owing to the Manhattan-for-beads stadium lease and other unrelated riverfront projects. The club is offering the county $40 million in lease concessions.
Sort of.
Knee-jerk reaction to any Bengals largesse is “Hmmm.’’
Carefully considered reaction to any Bengals largesse is “Hmmm.’’
It’s good the team wants to talk. Let’s not forget that after the club bludgeoned the county in the lease deal, the county sued the club, and lost. Since then, club and county have been as friendly as the Koreas. “A non-relationship or worse,’’ county commissioner David Pepper called it Monday.
If the club never wanted to speak to the county again, that would be understandable. The club could simply sit back, let the lease stand and cash very large checks.
Mike Brown to Todd Portune: “Change my lightbulbs, whippersnapper.’’
That the Bengals even offered to talk is laudable. It’s not their fault the economy is in the tank. Nor was it the Bengals’ doing that the original riverfront “plan’’ expanded from two stadiums to the monster it is now. It’s easy to scapegoat the football team. So we have.
You feel a “but’’ coming, don’t you?
With lawyers, there’s always a “but.’’
In return for the $40-mil, the Bengals want some things. They want all money from any naming-rights deal. They’d get almost all of it now, under current lease terms. They want all revenues from every event at PBS. They get most of that now, which isn’t much.
They want the county’s luxury box back, so they can lease it themselves. They want no additional taxes on tickets. In trade for forgiving a decade of “outpayments’’ the Bengals say would save the county $30 million, the club wants those years – 2017 to 2026 – to become “option’’ years. Whoa.
That means the Bengals could leave, after the 2016 season. They could opt out. Do you want that gun aimed at your head again, the way it was in the late-90s?
The Bengals aren’t exactly making a benevolent gesture. Did you expect they would? But it’s a start. “They’ve got a signed contract and they’re willing to give up 40 million bucks,’’ county auditor Dusty Rhodes said. “I would hope the commissioners would negotiate and say thank you.’’
The only thing that’s clear is that business as usual is bad business. The plan to pay for the stadiums doesn’t work. For sales tax receipts to increase 3 percent annually, as was figured, people would actually have to be spending money. Who’s doing that?
Hamilton County always will have enough cash to fund the stadiums. What about the $10 million annually to the schools? The Bengals’ lease says the county has to pay for stadium improvements if other teams’ stadiums are similarly improved. What if the county had to dip into its general fund to pay for either, to avoid going to court?
We can pay for a stadium. But we can’t pay for cops. That’d go over big.
The problem is, the county people want a way to make money from PBS. They’d like an increase in the ticket tax, for one. The Bengals say that’s not happening. Legally, the county is a beggar. The county commissioners would like the Bengals to give up more than they get. Perhaps the commissioners forget who they’re dealing with.
Said Pepper, “We all have to understand the (funding) model is broken. There’s not enough money coming in to meet all the commitments we’ve made. It’s in everyone’s interest to figure out what they can give up.’’
Generally, the Cincinnati Bengals don’t give up anything but yards and touchdowns. What’s more frightening than Jared Allen, rushing off the edge? Mike Brown, sitting across the table.
Something has to give. Make that, somebody. I wouldn’t bet against M. Brown. He’s pretty good in this game.
