Negotiations between the Rochester Red Wings and Monroe County regarding a new lease at Frontier Field haven’t just stalled on the base paths.

With the team's lease expiring, the protracted talks have put the sides — and the International League — in an “unfortunate time crunch’’ where options for the Red Wings to play in 2018 will have to be explored, according to league president Randy Mobley.

“It’s at a serious point, no question about that,’’ Mobley said Friday. “The conversation continues and there’s not a lot of time to get things worked out. That’s where we are. We’ll stay with it but time unfortunately is running out.’’

Mobley met with County Executive Cheryl Dinolfo and key staff members earlier this week in Rochester at Dinolfo's invitation. Mobley is due back in town early next week.

County officials aren't commenting on the negotiations, other than to say they want to both protect baseball and not further saddle taxpayers who have been paying for the stadium since it opened in 1996.

But Naomi Silver said it goes further than that.

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Silver, president and CEO of Rochester Community Baseball Inc., the public company that owns the Red Wings, said the county wants to assess the entire business operation — hoping the team can pay double the money it sends to the county now, which Silver said is between $900,000 to $1.1 million annually.

“We said to them, ‘You’re not going to evaluate how we do our jobs. You have no idea what it takes to run a ballclub,’" she said. "It’s unbelievable. We can’t let them do that. Are they going to tell me to hire a better general manager?’’

The season wraps up the first week of September, the Wings' lease expires once the games (including any postseason matchups) are done, and the IL board meets Sept. 19.

Other league members will need to know very soon where the Red Wings will be playing for scheduling purposes and the parent Minnesota Twins will want to know where their prospects will be playing to grant approval.

“As soon as one season is over, those obligations for next season come into play,’’ Mobley said. “We’re close to wrapping this one up, and we hope this can be resolved quickly.’’

The two sides will be back at the table on Monday, according to a statement issued Friday evening by county spokesman Brett Walsh.

"Monroe County has been informed (by Mobley) that the International League has no objection to our review of RCB's books and records, and we now await RCB's cooperation in this matter. Our negotiation team presented RCB with a lease agreement that would fairly compensate the county for the rental of the stadium. RCB has informed us that they would not be able to accept the proposal because of financial issues. For the county to justify a lease which would, in effect, continue to subsidize both the operations of RCB and the losses of the Batavia Muckdogs, we must better understand its true financial picture.

"Recognizing the Red Wings' many contributions to Rochester, the County has and will continue to negotiate in good faith to strike an agreement to keep the team at Frontier Field."

'A serious situation'

Negotiations have been ongoing since January, and Silver describes developments as “dire.’’

“They have really dug their heels in, and by Monday this could be a serious situation,’’ she said.

Amid all of this, Monroe County is assuming the role of stadium landlord from the Greater Rochester Outdoor Sports Facility Corporation, a local development corporation that has managed the stadium. The county created the LDC, which leases the stadium and then has a sublease with the Red Wings. Both agreements expire next month and any terms for an extension would also need to be negotiated.

The county, however, is looking to dissolve the LDC and take back oversight of the stadium, but avoid a situation like the city of Rochester — which took back the soccer stadium in 2008-09 and has seen annual subsidies grow from an initial $420,000 to nearly $590,000.

Dinolfo campaigned on a promise to eliminate LDCs. This one has been vexing, as it has failed to make rent payments intended to offset the county's debt payments on stadium construction. All told, it owes the county $32 million, a debt that effectively exists only on paper and will go away when the LDC is dissolved.

"It has always been county debt," said Robert Franklin, the county's CFO.

Were it not for those rent payments, stadium operation would break even, county officials note. The county refinanced the stadium debt a few years ago. Financial records of the LDC show operating costs have largely held steady, as the county has opted not to find the entity in default.

Instead, taxpayers have picked up the shortfall — somewhere between $1 million and $2 million a year — and still owe nearly $8 million on the stadium.

“You are asking the million dollar question,” Walsh said of whether the baseball stadium would be a drain on the county budget.

A new Frontier

The county opened Frontier Field in 1996, and the Red Wings started playing there in 1997.

Rochester Community Baseball has been operating on an “in lieu of rent’’ agreement, generating revenues from parking, suite rentals and naming rights that go directly to the county for 71 home games.

In addition, RCB turns over a slice of advertising, ticket and concession revenue with some attendance variables attached.

RCB is responsible for booking non-baseball events at Frontier Field, and is paid $75,000 a year to do so. But a portion of all non-baseball event concessions and rental fees also go to the LDC. The team also pays for ongoing daily maintenance.

While the Red Wings would prefer control of more of these revenue sources and to pay the county a flat rent that would be slightly more than they are generating now, Silver said the county wants to double what they have been generating.

County officials declined comment.

She said the county has requested to audit their financial records (much of it is available in the team’s annual report to shareholders) and also has requested time to evaluate their entire business operation to see if it is running as “efficiently’’ as it can.

Asked about the claim, Walsh responded via text message Friday: "The county is seeking access to the financial records of Rochester Community Baseball in order to best represent taxpayers' interest(s) .... The published financial statements lack the depth necessary."

If forced to pay much more, the Red Wings would have to raise prices or dip into the club’s savings that it relies on to get through down years in a volatile business impacted greatly by the weather and the club’s success on the field, Silver said.

Both of those things put their business at risk, she said. Records show the Red Wings’ most recent five-year pre-tax profit margin to be $91,000 a year. That doesn't include Muckdogs operations. The Red Wings have incurred an annual average loss of $172,000 in the nine years operating the single A team as an investment, said its shareholders report.

“The county has made us a proposal that would make it unaffordable (for us and fans),’’ Silver said. “I’m hoping they will see the light and understand that this ballclub is important to our community, very important, and we pay what we can pay."

In the negotiation fact sheet, RCB claims its operation annually generates $9.5 million in economic activity in the community.

Silver said RCB has given permission to the county to audit its books — they share the same accounting firm, Bonadio & Co. LLP. But to allow the county to assess how it does business, and whether it is maximizing profits, is something RCB won't allow, she said.

“We told them, ‘If you find we have done anything misleading or improper, if we’re hiding something, you can report that to the county and we’ll work it from there,’’ Silver said. “But there is no question they won’t find anything.’’

'A bit of a challenge'

The franchise, under General Manager Dan Mason, is consistently recognized for excellence in management, and, despite making the playoffs just three times, has drawn 9 million in paid attendance since moving into Frontier Field.

Twice this year the Red Wings have drawn 30,000-plus to Frontier Field in a weekend. A tireless schedule of game promotions included the recent Garbage Plate Night that drew 13,281, the fifth-largest baseball crowd in the stadium’s history.

The team also feels it has also maximized revenue potential by hosting a variety of non-baseball events including weddings, amateur sports, festivals and the Corporate Challenge. A motocross show drew a near capacity crowd last week.

“We had one date in August where we could’ve booked something and there was nothing to book, one date,’’ Silver said.

Mobley said the Red Wings organization is held in high regard throughout baseball.

“There is a great deal of respect for the Red Wings, the ballclub, the operation and the people running it not just in this league but throughout the industry,’’ he said. “There’s a bit of a challenge right now in educating the county in some areas, in some financial areas and others, that we hope will lead to some positive results.’’

The Red Wings maintain they have lived up to the terms of their lease; a deal they say is among the worst in the minor leagues. The original lease was brokered not knowing what revenues Frontier Field was capable of generating, but they are known now.

The Red Wings conceded to the county many revenue streams that professional teams normally get in order to get the stadium built. Back then the team, still playing in the old Silver Stadium, needed the facility to stay in operation and meet updated standards set by Major League Baseball.

Asked if the Red Wings have lived up to their end of the bargain, Walsh said, "I don't know the depths of their agreement. I don't have a good answer for you."

"The fundamental question," he said, "is what are we going to do today? It's 20 years later, and we need to renegotiate a contract, make sure baseball will be successful in Rochester for years to come ... (and) do our best to represent taxpayers.

"We are hopeful. That is our perspective."

Said Silver: “For 21 years we’ve operated with a lot of integrity, with a community that’s supportive and appreciative, and the county has been a great partner to us, keeping the stadium up as best they could, and now there’s an administration saying ‘This isn’t good enough. We can do better.’ There’s no way to understand what they are doing and I think our fans and the voters are going to have to speak up.’’

LROTH@Gannett.com

BDSHARP@Gannett.com