Tuesday, they voted solidly against the proposal to contribute Broward hotel bed taxes toward fixing up the 23-year-old Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens.
Their vote made stopping passage of a proposed state bill (HB 141) one of the county's legislative priorities in 2011. The proposed bill would make it legally possible for Broward to spend tourist taxes outside the county, on the stadium.
Even if the law passes in Tallahassee, however, the County Commission would still have to approve spending the money that way.
Supporters said renovating the stadium where the Dolphins play is crucial to attracting Super Bowls to South Florida. And, the argument goes, hotels and businesses in Broward County have reaped millions of dollars in benefits in the years the stadium has hosted the football extravaganza.
Broward tourism chief Nicki Grossman said last week that Broward hotels got more business from the Super Bowl than those in Miami-Dade did.
Several Broward commissioners came out against the plan last week, when the proposal was announced. But not until Tuesday was it clear that it did not have the votes to pass in Broward.
Commissioner Chip LaMarca said he is a sports fan but could never support it. He issued a statement Thursday that the Dolphins should ``focus more on winning more than one game at home during the season instead of trying to pilfer tax dollars from our local government.''
Commissioner Kristin Jacobs agreed, saying Broward shouldn't wait for the bill to pass to have this debate. ``This is the point where we stand up and say, `No. Hell no,' '' she said.
Dolphins senior vice president of media relations Harvey Greene said Tuesday the team was ``disappointed'' that Broward would snuff out debate ``long before everyone has been able to weigh the merits of a specific proposal.''
He said the team holds out hope that ``once all of the facts are known about what is at stake and what the benefits are to the local community, that a dialogue will be welcomed and a more constructive and informed discussion can occur.''
NO VOCAL SUPPORT
Dolphins CEO Mike Dee had floated the idea to hoteliers and tourism officials in Broward in recent months, but the team was unprepared to defend it or champion it when the idea became public last week. Likewise, no one stepped up to support it Tuesday.
The proposal's first step would be passage by the Florida Legislature. Then the county commissions of Broward and Miami-Dade would have to vote to implement it.
Miami-Dade's side of the equation would be a one-cent increase in the hotel bed tax to go toward stadium renovations and enhancements of the Miami Beach Convention Center. Broward could raise its tourist tax a penny, also under the proposed bill, though no one has said that would be necessary.
That Broward voted Tuesday to include its opposition in this year's state legislative priorities means lobbyists for the county will have to work in Tallahassee against the bill. That puts one prominent county lobbyist in a squeeze. Ron Book works for Broward, but also is the lobbyist for the Dolphins.
Commissioner Kristin Jacobs said she found it ``troubling'' that ``our own lobbyist is up there lobbying for the bill.'' She asked interim county attorney Andrew Meyers what could be done. He said he would check, adding that ``the potential remedy is termination'' of Book's contract.
Book was not present, but said via e-mail that he would seek a waiver releasing him from acting as the county's lobbyist on this issue. ``If they do not approve,'' he said, ``we will look at our options.''
Another of Book's recent clients, the operators and tenants of Broward's major sports venue, also are vehemently opposed. That is the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, where the Florida Panthers play ice hockey.
Sunrise Sports & Entertainment president Michael Yormark told commissioners Tuesday that the attempt to snare Broward's tax dollars was presented under a false guise as a Super Bowl issue. ``This is not about Super Bowls,'' he told them. ``This is about a roof being put on top of a facility so it can enter the entertainment industry and compete for concerts and shows and other events.''
SHARED PROFITS
The Panthers arena was built with taxpayer support in Broward. The county contributes $9 million in tourist taxes each year for 30 years in a deal that started in the mid-1990s, Vice Mayor John Rodstrom said. The arena's operators have to share profits with the county if the profits hit a certain threshold. But Rodstrom said that has only happened once.
Only two of Broward's nine commissioners -- Stacy Ritter and Rodstrom -- said they would entertain the stadium proposal. The move would need a super-majority of six Broward County Commission votes.
Five commissioners were against it outright, and two, Barbara Sharief and Ilene Lieberman, were not present to say how they felt.
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