Submitted by Nell Gross
on
A new professional basketball and hockey arena in Seattle could steal tax dollars from neighboring communities. That’s according to the analysis of University of Washington geography professor Bill Beyers, who has spent a lot of time studying the economic impact of professional sports.
Beyers has done previous analyses about the Mariners and Seahawks, as well as KeyArena. As part of an expert panel, Beyers presented his initial thoughts on the proposed NBA and NHL arena to the King County Council.
He says one thing that needs to be looked at more closely is how it would shift tax dollars within the region. He gives an example of someone in Tacoma opting to go to a basketball game in Seattle instead of buying a shirt at the Tacoma mall.