No Ballot Measure For $135 Million Mariners Subsidy

SEATTLE, WA - A ballot measure over the $135 million subsidy for SafeCo field upgrades is outta here. The group behind the effort said Wednesday it won't pursue a referendum.

In September, the King County Council approved sending $135 million in lodging taxes to the Mariners for upkeep at SafeCo. A group called Citizens Against Sports Stadium Subsidies (CASSS) emerged, pledging to back a referendum to let voters weigh-in on the issue.

The $135 million subsidy was a hot issue this summer. Housing advocates wanted the money to go toward building affordable housing rather than to the Mariners, a team valued at $1.4 billion. The Mariners had initially asked for $180 million.

As part of a compromise, the County Council voted in September to reduce the Mariners subsidy and increase funding for affordable housing by $165 million to a total of $661 million (includes a $100 million bond already proposed by the county). But the Council also cut tourism funding by about $100 million to just $8 million; that includes the elimination of $1.3 million in funding for Kent's Showare Center.

Here's the letter CASSS sent to the County Council clerk on Wednesday: