West End wants to know: What taxes would an FC Cincinnati stadium bring in for schools?

FC Cincinnati was again pressed about how much tax money the school district would receive from a Major League Soccer stadium in the West End as club President Jeff Berding took questions Tuesday for a second straight evening.

Speaking to the board of the West End Community Council the night after he appeared before Cincinnati Public Schools' Board of Education, Berding made a streamlined pitch for a new stadium behind Taft Information Technology High School.

He was asked directly if his organization was seeking a tax abatement. Some audience members Monday night said Berding failed to clearly answer that question.

"Every single aspect of a deal with CPS, they would be held harmless," Berding said Tuesday night. "Any tax dollars (collected) where the stadium would be, they would get that much or more. They will not get less."

Opponents are concerned that residents will be displaced and CPS will lose out on tax money.

The meeting with the community council board did not allow for comments from the large audience gathered at the Carl H. Linder YMCA, behind the Cincinnati College Preparatory Academy on Linn Street.

In short, Berding's plan calls for his club to replace Taft High School's Stargel Stadium with a new stadium on land across Ezzard Charles Drive from the high school, where Drees Homes had planned to build a Citirama. FC Cincinnati would buy that land from Drees and take the lead on building more affordable homes in City West on 66 scattered sites — many of them on Laurel Park Drive — it has the option to buy from the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority.

Berding has said the club's attempt to gain entry into MLS depends on having a new, soccer-specific stadium.

He emphasized several times that the West End was not Plan A or that any hierarchy of sites existed. He said the club is also considering Oakley and riverfront property in Newport for its stadium site.

Berding brought a wingman Tuesday night, as well. He was joined by former Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory, a native and self-described part-time resident of the West End whom Berding introduced as FC Cincinnati's director of community development.

"Because I have such a rich history in the West Cincinnati, it's important to me that this community benefits from this project," Mallory said.

In his opening remarks, the former mayor, 55, talked about growing up on Dayton Street and how he gave two reporters a tour of the neighborhood a few hours earlier.

"We saw where the Kroger used to be. We saw where the Walgreen's used to be," Mallory said. "We saw where gas stations and hair joints all used to be, all within walking distance. There was seven or eight corner stores or pony kegs within walking distance of my house. The West End has changed a lot over the years. We are presented with a $200 million project. How can something like this benefit the neighborhood?

"We have an opportunity to set a precedent in this community."

Community council board members directed as many questions at Mallory as they asked of Berding.

Community council member Robert Killins said the FC Cincinnati proposal for the West End "is a good problem to have."

Another board member brought up the possible move of MLS's Columbus Crew to Austin, Texas. What if Cincinnati is stuck with an empty stadium?

Berding said FC Cincinnati's ownership, including principal owner Carl Lindner III, is "not going anywhere. … We're here in the Carl Lindner YMCA."

On Feb. 9, the community council issued a statement that asked community leaders from outside the neighborhood to remove themselves from the decision-making process.

"We appreciate the interest and desires of organizations and concerned citizens in providing input to the potential FCC stadium and its impact," wrote West End Community Council President Keith Blake in the group's memo. "We respectfully request that West End Community Council and West End Community be allowed to represent the views and desires of our residents."

Berding is scheduled to speak to an open West End Community Council meeting on Feb. 20, when he will hear comments from audience members.

Cincinnati Councilman David Mann and CPS Board Member Mike Moroski attended the Tuesday night meeting.

Another community meeting on the FC Cincinnati stadium proposal will be held Thursday at 6 p.m. at the Seven Hills Neighborhood House, 901 Findlay St., West End, and CPS is going to hear from the public again at 6 p.m. Feb. 21 at Taft High School.