Hartford To Pay 8 Percent Annually For Stadium Project

HARTFORD The city would pay $3.77 million annually for the first five years it leases a minor league baseball stadium that is part of a sweeping redevelopment plan, according to projections in city documents and the developer's plan.

For the first five years of a 25-year lease, Hartford would pay a developer 8 percent of the aggregate cost of building the baseball stadium, records show. The city would then sublease the ballpark to the New Britain Rock Cats, who would begin playing there in 2016.

The projected cost of building the stadium is $47.13 million, according to a proposal from Centerplan Development Co., the firm chosen to redevelop land north of downtown.

Centerplan's proposal also includes 210,000 square feet of municipal office space, more than 600 residential units, retail space and a brewery. The entire project would cost $350 million, and be paid for with private debt and private equity capital, the company said.

After the first five years of the city's lease with Centerplan, its rent payments would go up by 5 percent every five years.

The Rock Cats would pay the city $500,000 a year for the first 15 years of a 25-year sublease, and $600,000 annually in the final 10 years.

City officials have not yet offered a detailed plan for how Hartford would fund its lease payments to Centerplan, but have said that parking fees and revenue from the naming rights, among other things, could help make up the difference.

Centerplan's proposal also notes that the city would invest $8 million in the project for "offsite and roadway improvements." Maribel La Luz, Mayor Pedro Segarra's communications director, said Monday that Hartford would spend about $8 million from its capital improvement projects budget to upgrade the roads regardless of whether the ballpark is built.

Hartford officials have proposed building a 220,000-square-foot stadium to lure the Rock Cats, the Double A Eastern League affiliate of the Minnesota Twins, to the city. Construction on the ballpark would be completed by April 1, 2016, in time for that year's season.

The city council will vote on the redevelopment plan and the leases. Segarra sent proposals to the panel on Thursday. A public hearing has been scheduled for Sept. 17 at the Parker Memorial Community Center on Main Street.

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Hartford To Pay 8 Percent Annually For Stadium Project