Texas High School Building $60 Million Dollar Stadium - bond supported by most of town

[Liberal_in_LA]

A Texas high school is building a $60 million football stadium.

Most of the people living in Allen voted in favor of a $119 million bond for the project. Allen High School's stadium holds about 14,000 fans but it's a tight fit believe it or not.

The marching band has more than 600 members, which makes it the largest in the nation. The new stadium will have 18,000 seats.

"I think that's what people that aren't from this area, or not from Texas, don't understand," says Athletic Director Steve Williams. "The magnitude of the event and how many people come to support and watch their kids."

The district's superintendent Kevin Helvey say the stadium alone is going to generate considerable revenue for the community. A lot of people may not understand it, but that revenue goes right back into the whole fund for the teachers. It doesn't go directly to the football program.



http://www.digtriad.com/news/article/173657/175/Texas-High-School-Building-60-Million-Dollar-Stadium

[jpak]

1. Priorities

yup

[tularetom]

Unfuckingbelievable

I realize it's Texas and everything but the people who voted to tax themselves up the wazoo for this bond issue are the same people who prance around with teabags on their hats bitching about how much of your tax money the government spends on fucking NPR.

[Odin2005]

4. It's TEXAS, Football is the state religion down there.

[tularetom]

6. I know that but jeezus, even for Texas that's ridiculous

Using your fucking brain sure ain't the state religion, that's for sure.

[Odin2005]

2. Why am I reminded of the scene in Friday Night Lights...

...in which a hick calls in to an Odessa, Texas radio station to say that school football was the only school thing worth funding? :eyes:

[MadBadger]

28. A Jumbotron or new textbooks

[Drale]

3. If your not near a big city

and can't go to professional games, High school or college will have to do. If thats what the people want, then thats what they get. That is the essence of democracy isn't it?

[Odin2005]

5. it's IDIOCRACY.

That money should go to ACADEMICS.

Fuck sports.

[Drale]

7. There would be enough for both Academics and sports

if Repukes knew anything about economics. I for one support democracy and if the people voted for it, and its their taxes being raised, I don't see how it effects us at all. Unless you live in said town and voted no. People like sports, they always have and always will, if you are not a fan, you can not understand the attraction.

[Liberal_in_LA]

10. I hope this town has well paved roads, nice community centers & parks, good hospitals

If they can afford a fancy stadium, I hope they have their act together with their infrastructure.

[RB TexLa]

21. Allen, has pretty nice everything. It's a neighboring city to me in Plano

Good roads, great schools, low crime

[pstokely]

29. Great schools by Texas standards

bur most "great" public schools are located in rich white areas

[Chris_Texas]

26. It does.

[RB TexLa]

20. Money that people voted to go to one thing should go to something else?

[Chris_Texas]

24. It's thier money.

And in any case there is probably nowhere in America that is not spending MORE than enought on education. It might not be going to the kids and teachers, but the money is getting taxed and spent none the less.

[Spider Jerusalem]

8. Nice to see they have their priorities in order

teacher salaries? School facilities? No, a football stadium. Is the stadium going to generate $60 million in revenue? Probably not. 6-8 home games a season with say 15000 seats sold per game at $5 a ticket? Add in any concession profit and you're still looking at revenues that don't even come close to recouping the sunk costs.

[tularetom]

19. So the stadium will basically be subsidized with tax dollars

The thing will cost 60 million bucks and have a life expectancy of oh let's be generous and say 50 years. The total cost with interest to be paid back over the life of the project will be around 2.5 times the original cost or $150 million - $3 million per year. Let's again be generous and say they play 10 home games per year - then each game has to generate $300k in income. Let's say the tickets cost $10, and all 4000 new seats are sold out at each game. Their total gate from the new seats is $40k per game. Even if we assume that every one of the 4000 spectators buys $10 worth of hot dogs, drinks, popcorn, etc. and the school makes a profit of 50%. That's another $20k in the kitty leaving them only short by $300k minus $60k. So they go into the hole by $240,000 for every game they play. That's not money going FOR teacher salaries, that's money that would be better spent on teacher salaries taken away and spent on a fucking silly ass football stadium.

[jp11]

9. I've read numerous accounts of how stadiums don't put money back into the

locales they are put up in and the people end up paying millions of dollars so the owners of the stadiums can get a nice new location to print money while paying near minimum wage for the vast majority of people they employ.

[whoneedstickets]

11. 4000 more seats for $60m, those are expensive seats...

$15k each.

[Bozita]

12. Any teacher layoffs in Allen, TX this year?

[Liberal_in_LA]

14. I hope not.

[underpants]

13. Basically free labor

[proud2BlibKansan]

15. Wow. You bet people don't understand.

In freaking sane.

[Bozita]

16. Two or three weeks ago, PBS Frontline did a program on HS football in Texas.

It pretty much captured this kind of sports-nut culture.

It's available for online viewing at:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/football-high/

[Obamanaut]

17. It was hard for people to believe in February, also ->

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x320474

[dkf]

22. 650,000 square foot campus?

That is 15 acres. How big is this school anyway?

On edit: 5,000 kids. Geez.

[WinkyDink]

18. Friday Night Lights, people.

[somone]

23. They'll need a nice locker room also

UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS

The UT football locker room features a lounge area with game tables, 125 personalized lockers for the players, five flat-screen TVs and a three-dimensional, lighted 20-foot Longhorn on the ceiling. The facility, which is named the Howard L. Terry-Bobby Moses Jr. Longhorn Locker Room, is described on the UT athletics department's Web site as 'one of the finest collegiate locker rooms in the country.'

http://www.statesman.com/search/content/sports/stories/longhorns/09/30/Locker-Room-UT-Ho1.html

[seabeyond]

25. i know. isnt it sick. nt

[Chris_Texas]

27. Again, it'sTHIER money.

Obviously not everyone agrees that this is a good idea (I think it's silly myself) but then, they can build any-damn-thing they want with their cash. It is also a nice construction project that will probably bring some jobs to the area.

And all that aside one thing is certain: Americans already spend a ludicrous amount on education for some hillariously poor results. More money, while always the call of the teacher, is clearloy not the answser.