By Gina Stack
If you are like most Pilots, including myself, you are an avid soccer fan and would love to have a Major League Soccer team right here in Portland. This dream may become a reality quite soon.
In case you are unaware, the city of Portland currently has a minor league soccer team named the Timbers, which plays at PGE Park downtown. The team reemerged as part of the United Soccer League First Division in 2001 after taking a long hiatus during the 1980s and 1990s.
Recently, there has been a major movement by Timbers fans and local business leaders to allow the Timbers to become a Major League Soccer team. Last week, the Portland City Council voted 3-2 to allow further talks with city leaders and project financers, while also giving the Major League Soccer organization permission to decide whether or not to allow the Timbers into the league. As of Wednesday morning, rumors having been circulating online, suggesting that the MLS and Timbers may hold a press conference on Friday morning announcing the MLS's decision to bring the Timbers into the league.
Timbers fans are notoriously proud of their team. (If you ever have the chance to go to a game, be sure to sit in the Timbers' Army section. Just be ready to lose all hearing, become a victim of smoke bombs, and drink a lot of beer!) However, not all Portlanders are so excited about the prospect of a major league soccer team.
Despite opponents' concerns, I sincerely hope that the Timbers do gain the MLS status. Upon looking at the facts and figures of the business deal at hand, it is clear that the Timbers' entrance into MLS would benefit Portland more than it would harm the city.
A worry many people have is regarding the financial implications of the deal. According to initial estimates, the total cost of the project would be $129 million. This includes improvements to PGE Park, as well as the destruction of the Memorial Coliseum and the building of a new baseball park for the AAA Beavers baseball team.
The owner of the Beavers and the Timbers, Merritt Paulson, plans to contribute $64.5 million toward the project. Considering Paulson's father was previously the former U.S. treasury secretary and a Wall Street mogul, finding this money as well as contributions from family members will probably only require a quick look through some couch cushions in the Paulson home.
The remaining cost will be covered through bonds that will be repaid with the proceeds of urban renewal projects located near the Rose Quarter and PGE Park.
Additionally, the deal would create approximately 600 new jobs in the Portland area. This alone warrants serious support of the project during this recession, when Portland should not dismiss any opportunity for new jobs.
At a time when Portland is experiencing a downturn in the economy and general morale (we are the unhappiest city in the country according to a recent study), a positive development such as MLS coming to town would boost our spirits and provide the city with financial benefits for years to come.
?Gina Stack is the Advertising ?Manager of The Beacon
