Utah Public–Private Stadium Deals Highlight Growing Trend Roiling Conservatives

Rivals say Gov. Spencer Cox will pay in the June GOP primary for backing bills that commit tax money to boost Salt Lake City’s drive to attract MLB, NHL teams.

Utah FairPark, seen on March 3, 2024, will be the anchor of a 200-acre redevelopment district in west Salt Lake City where $900 million in public monies, mostly in sales taxes, will contribute to a $7 billion project designed to revitalize the area and bring a Major League Baseball team to the city, one of a growing number of public-private sports and entertainment ventures nationwide. John Haughey/The Epoch Times

SALT LAKE CITY—Local and state governments across the United States continue to dip into public funds to build or subsidize private sports venues, even as more than 130 studies compiled over decades confirm that the use of those coffers rarely produces the promised return on investment for taxpayers.

The latest: The Utah Legislature in Salt Lake City, during its 45-day 2024 session that concluded on March 2, agreed to kick in nearly $2 billion in public funding in public-private redevelopment projects to build a National Hockey League (NHL) arena and Major League Baseball (MLB) stadium.