49ers Santa Clara Stadium Project Faces City Council Hurdle
SANTA CLARA (KCBS) — The San Francisco 49ers will be back before the Santa Clara City Council Tuesday night for a presentation to get their proposed new stadium moving forward.
Santa Clara voters approved the stadium plan a year ago in June, but since then there have been several roadblocks including a year-long delay in stadium construction, the NFL lockout and the demise of redevelopment agency funding.
KCBS' Betsy Gebhart Reports:
Bill Bailey from the group that opposes the stadium, Santa Clara Plays Fair, claims financing is still up in the air.
"Everyone was told that we'd only be down for $114 million, then the number grew to $444 million, and then on June 7, we learned that that number is going to increase yet again," said Bailey.
Santa Clara's Assistant City Manager Carol McCarthy contends the city's contribution has not changed. "There is no increase in contribution from the city's redevelopment agency or from the city's facilities district. Everything is originally as envisioned and as voted on by our residents," McCarthy said.
Last week the 49ers announced they have sold $138 million in stadium luxury boxes. The city's mayor, Jamie Matthews, said that exceeds expectations and that he expects the stadium to be ready by the 2015 season.
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