Do you support the new private financing plan for the Virginia Beach arena? Why or why not?

I say Yes

I say No

My lack of support for the "private financing" plan is multi-faceted:
1 - The plan still requires$75+ million in public funds to support the project. Parking should be a cost of the developers of the project, not the city. When we built our house, we were required to provide a minimum of 2 parking spaces on our property. The city did not fund our parking for home. We had to budget that cost into the cost of ownership. A business plan should be sound enough to afford parking costs.
2 - Since the developers are 100% responsible for the debt of the arena, what happens if the arena revenues do not sustain the debt level that they have committed to? Will we be faced with a monstrosity with no other purpose that sits on prime real estate owned by the city that the owners have defaulted on?
3 - I have read nothing about how much city support will be required to control traffic that will be trying to get to or from the arena on a 3 lane highway. How will the residents get to and from their homes when an event is taking place and the interstate is basically grid locked? Hampton Roads residents will know enough to take alternative routes which will then gridlock our neighborhood streets, further limiting our ability to get to or from our residences. It will only take a couple of events (if well attended) to push the city into providing police and other resources to control traffic for every event. Can we handle that level of increased expense? Or will there be a large tax on every ticket to events held at the arena that will cover these additional costs?
4 - I have some level of concern that the investors of the project are now putting up significantly less personal funds than they initially proposed. This makes the debt percentage much higher as well as the risk to the city. There should be a minimum investment percentage required.

I am supportive of the fact that there is no financing coming from China with ties to Chinese products. However, this arena is a substantial investment from the city and there is little assurance that it will be a profitable venture given there are no major sports teams to fill it and we already have a concert venue in the city that it will compete with during the summer months. The convention center is not at capacity so there is little need for additional convention space. I think we need to have a "Plan B" for the arena in the event it is less successful than it's developers are projecting.

I say Yes

It's a no-brainer. The revenue generated in the slow months will be a windfall for the area. Let's get on with it!

I say Yes

I say Yes

The changes described for financing make this project a win-win-win for VB. Construction jobs, arena jobs when complete, an attractive venue, increased tourism revenue - these all will have a positive impact. VB will make the infrastructure improvements - as it should - to improve the area and complement the new arena.

I say No

I say Yes

I say Yes

I believe that in the long run the arena will benefit the city and community. Overall the deal is more than fair and the city is only paying for improvements to the area and not the actual project. The main concern I believe citizens have is the increase local taxes. Eventually I hope building this arena would attract someone to have a professional sports team come to this area where I know it would be supported.

I say Yes

It will bring jobs to the area.

I say Yes