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A Times Editorial
© St. Petersburg Times, published September 27, 2002
When it comes to one local government doing another local government a favor, this is a big one. The city of St. Petersburg is asking the Pinellas County Commission to take title to the city-owned Tropicana Field and then lease the stadium back to the city at no cost. That way, St. Petersburg can avoid an annual $1.3-million tax bill, because the state Constitution does not allow county governments to be taxed.
The city found itself in this dilemma after the Florida Supreme Court removed cities' tax-exempt status on facilities they lease to sports teams and other businesses. By then, St. Petersburg had a contract with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays that relieved the team of any property tax responsibility. So once the city lost its exempt status, it has been paying $25,000 a week in taxes on Tropicana Field.
That strikes St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Baker as excessive taxation on city residents, and he has a point. City residents -- who already pay taxes on their own property -- shouldn't be penalized because city officials didn't foresee this turn of events.
City and county attorneys have already concluded that Pinellas County faces no liability if it takes on ownership of Tropicana Field. Through the lease, the city would keep all the obligations it already assumes on the stadium. And the sublease between the city and Devil Rays would not change that relationship.
While it accepts no risk, Pinellas County also gets no tangible benefit from the agreement, other than helping out city residents (who are also county residents, of course). That means the County Commission would be doing the city a big favor, and it wouldn't be the first time in recent months that the county has shown a willingness to act in support of better intergovernmental relations. The County Commission recently voted to raise the tax rate on residents in unincorporated areas of the county in an effort to balance costs borne by city residents.
The County Commission has scheduled a workshop to discuss the lease issue on Oct. 8 and could vote on it at the Oct. 15 meeting. It is understandable that commissioners want to clarify the issues and maybe get an outside legal opinion on the lease. But there is no reason to delay action beyond October.
Commissioners should help St. Petersburg out of its expensive dilemma. In return, the county should expect more cooperation, not only from St. Petersburg but from all 24 cities. There is a new sense of interdependence among Pinellas County's sometimes contentious local governments, and taxpayers stand to be the winners.