Why No Private Investment in Proposed New Cubs Stadium?

While there is no shortage of verbal support for a new Chicago Cubs spring training facility located in the City of Mesa, there appears to be a lack of commitment within the private sector on the monetary side of the issue. A competing proposal floated last year from a Florida group included $50 million in private investment. The lead investor in this arrangement was Esmark, Inc. To be sure, there would have been some public funds needed to complete the deal, but $50 million is a sizeable portion of the total that would have been needed. The strongest argument for using virtually all public funding in this case appears to be that it has always been done that way here in Arizona. On the other hand, we weren’t always going broke. With both the City of Mesa and the State of Arizona bleeding red ink by barrel full, maybe it’s time to rethink how to use what few resources remain available.