Mesa Still Searching For Cubs Complex Funding

By Marcus Gilmer in News on Mar 30, 2010 6:20PM

As Spring Training 2010 winds down, the city of Mesa, Arizona is looking for a new way to fund a promised new complex for the Cubs. MLB Commissioner Bud Selig recently shot down the proposed "Cubs Tax," a $2.25 surcharge that would have been added to every Cactus League ticket in the state of Arizona to help pay for the new $84 million complex. Several other teams, including the White Sox, had previously made known their displeasure over the proposed tax. So it's back to the drawing board for the Cubs, Major League Baseball, and Mesa mayor Scott Smith.

The Cubs are the biggest draw of the Cactus League teams and leveraged the new complex after threatening to move their Spring Training base to Florida. As part of their 25-year lease agreement, the Cubs' new Spring Training complex will include a 15,000-seat stadium, offices, training rooms and four full-sized practice fields -- and it'll be theirs alone. Many team share Spring Training facilities, like the Sox and Dodgers do in Glendale. The Cubs will have a say in the stadium's new design and full control of the park when finished. They'll manage it, and also have naming rights for a sponsor and control of signage inside the park.