Vote On $180 Million Payment To Mariners Postponed

SEATTLE, WA - The King County Council on Wednesday held a hearing on a proposal to give the Mariners $180 million in lodging tax dollars for upgrades and maintenance at Safeco Field. But the Council postponed a vote on the measure until next week.

People opposed to the idea - many who believe the money should go to build affordable housing - packed the Council Committee of the Whole meeting on Wednesday morning. The meeting lasted over three hours and included a presentation from the Seattle Public Facilities District, which owns Safeco.

The county and the Mariners have agreed on a new 25-year lease agreement for Safeco. As part of the lease, the Mariners would get about $180 million over the 25 years for capital improvements. If the Mariners don't get the money, the team says it will have to renegotiate the lease.

The $180 million would come from the county's 2 percent hotel tax. When the county finishes paying off bonds for the construction of CenturyLink in 2021, that hotel tax revenue will be available for use. Of the total pot, 37.5 percent would go toward 4Culture, 37.5 percent to building affordable housing near transit, and the remaining 25 percent to tourism, including the $180 million for Safeco.

Council members Jean Kohl-Welles and Dave Upthegrove have indicated they will not vote to approve the money for the Mariners.

The Council will take up the issue at a meeting next Wednesday.

File photo by Neal McNamara/Patch