PX: Commissioner Portune open to idea of port authority involvement in soccer stadium

UPDATE: Hamilton County Commissioner Todd Portune says he's open to the idea of the Greater Cincinnati Redevelopment Authority having some involvement with the soccer stadium, but does not want the agency to own the venue.

"I am not against using the port's tools so long as the public is held harmless and so long as we never end up owning a stadium," Portune told Politics Extra on Friday night.

The port authority, for example, has the ability to issue tax-exempt bonds, and Portune would be fine with that. That's something the economic development agency often does to help save some money on projects across the county.

It remains unclear whether FC Cincinnati could take advantage of a 7 percent tax abatement on the cost of stadium construction materials without port authority ownership, something Mayor John Cranley has proposed. That abatement, another public-financing tool the port offers, could save up to $6 million on a $200 million stadium, agency officials said.

To further clarify his stance on the port authority's potential involvement, Portune said via email:

"It is not just that FCC's owners hold us harmless, though that is a part of it. But FCC's owners must also be the owners of the stadium at the end of the day. When the stadium is built and bond covenants are met, or if anything goes wrong before then, the property reverts to the owners of FCC. No matter what, the property must end up being owned by the owners of FCC with there being no public risk related to the stadium."

Commissioners are scheduled to discuss the port authority's potential involvement with the stadium during Monday's weekly meeting, Portune said.

ORIGINAL COLUMN: Hamilton County Commissioner Todd Portune is delivering another blow to FC Cincinnati's hopes of receiving public money for infrastructure needed to build a new stadium.

The Greater Cincinnati Redevelopment Authority isn't going to own the stadium regardless of what the city's plan says, Portune told Politics Extra. If the agency – also known as the port authority – doesn't own the soccer venue, it could wipe out up to $6 million in tax breaks the soccer club presumably has figured into its stadium costs.

"If the port owns the stadium and 20 years from now the league goes out of business or the team goes somewhere else, the facility's debt and expenses are then owned by the public," Portune said. "The port is an extension of the city and the county, and, by law, those are our obligations.

"We’ve made it very clear we’re not going to own anymore stadiums."

More: PX: FC Cincinnati's stadium plan cloaked in secrecy. No wonder it's a debacle

Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley's plan calls for the port to own an Oakley-based stadium and lease it to FC Cincinnati for 20 to 30 years. A lease agreement likely would allow FC Cincinnati to take advantage of tax-exempt bonds and receive a 7 percent sales-tax abatement on construction materials.

Savings on concrete, steel and other materials would range from $4 million to $6 million on a $200 million stadium, port authority officials said. That's a big chunk of money, especially considering Cranley's proposal already falls $20 million short of the $70 million in public dollars the soccer team wants for stadium-related infrastructure.

FC Cincinnati plans to cover the $200 million cost to build the stadium itself.

City Council's budget committee is scheduled to vote Monday on the Cranley plan. As it is, the port authority portion of Cranley's proposed ordinance apparently will be moot.

"It can’t be done without the port's consent or the county’s consent," Portune said. "Curiously, neither of us were involved in this."

Cranley is on vacation and unavailable for comment.

Commissioners next week are expected to approve a 1,000-vehicle parking garage for the stadium. Its debt would be paid for by money generated from parking fees, and the commissioners have held the line on not giving anymore public money to the stadium.

More: As we celebrate Thanksgiving, FC Cincinnati works to convince City Council

The port authority is a quasi-governmental agency designed to jumpstart development. Under state law, port authorities are allowed to offer several public-financing options. Cincinnati's agency uses the construction-materials tax abatement on projects that can prove a jobs-creation benefit.

The city and county each give $700,000 a year to the authority's operating budget. Also, the city and county appoint the agency's board members. The port board can make its own decisions, but it typically seeks the blessing of both the city and county on a major public project.

"If the county commissioners order us not to be involved, my opinion is we will not," port authority Chairman Charlie Luken said.

This is the latest twist in what's been a roller-coaster week on the stadium front. Cranley's decision to include the authority in his plan flies in the face of all the talk in recent months about there being more cooperation between the city and county.

Cranley's proposal caught the commissioners off guard. He didn't mention the port authority's involvement during his press conference last Friday, but The Enquirer's Sharon Coolidge later discovered it in the mayor's proposed ordinance. Portune learned about the proposal from The Enquirer.

"County officials were a little bit surprised to see the port involved as a stakeholder," Portne said. "In fact, involved to a point of owning the stadium."

This circus ends next week. We think.

Politics Extra is a column looking inside Greater Cincinnati and Ohio politics. Follow Enquirer political columnist Jason Williams on Twitter @jwilliamscincy and send email to jwilliams@enquirer.com.