Stadium Construction & Relocation
New Stadium Costs
Base Cost: $170,000,000
Artificial Surface: +$10,000,000
Grass Surface: +$50,000,000
Open Stadium: +$10,000,000
Domed Stadium: +$50,000,000
Retractable Roof Stadium: +$100,000,000
Code:
Seating:
31,000-35,999 seats: $0 + $5,000,000 per 1000 seats
36,000-40,999 seats: $25,000,000 + $10,000,000 per 1000 seats
41,000-45,999 seats: $75,000,000 + $15,000,000 per 1000 seats
46,000-55,999 seats: $150,000,000 + $20,000,000 per 1000 seats
> 55,999 seats: $350,000,000 + $25,000,000 per 1000 seats
Under this system, a 31,000 seat, open stadium with a grass field would cost $230 Million. A 42,000 seat domed stadium with artificial turf would cost $320 Million, and a 54,000 seat stadium with a retractable roof and grass field would cost $630 Million.
Now, obviously teams will never have that much money. So luckily, teams will be responsible for only a portion of this cost. First, 15% of the total cost must be paid by the team upon moving into the new stadium. Then, an additional 10% of the total cost must be paid in a minimum of 2% increments over the next five years they call that ballpark home. A team may choose to pay off this remaining 10% as quickly as they want, but must pay at least 2% per year.
The remaining 75% of the total cost is deferred to the city, taxpayers, and private organizations to fund.
So let's pay off a hypothetical stadium. For our previously mentioned 42,000 seat stadium that costs $320 Million, a team must pay $48 Million (15%) before moving into the completed park, and at least $8 Million (2.5%) each year for the next four years. If the team has excess cash-on-hand and wishes to pay off the remaining 10% quickly, they can do so. For example, a team could pay the $48 Million to move into the stadium, and then the remaining $32 Million all at once and have paid off the entire stadium.
Stadium Construction is not spontaneous, so a period of at least 1 year is required from the announcement and approval of a construction plan before the team can move into the new park.
Stadium Construction also carries the bonus of creating a mandatory Fan Interest minimum for the first five seasons of a stadium’s life, and other bonuses as well depending on the type of stadium constructed.
Fan Interest Opening Day Minimum
Minimums:
Year 1: 85
Year 2: 80
Year 3: 75
Year 4: 70
Year 5: 65
Bonuses:
Artificial Surface: -5 Fan Interest (5 years)
Grass Surface: +10 Fan Interest (5 years)
Open Stadium: +0 Fan Interest
Domed Stadium: +5 Fan Interest (5 years), +1 Market Size (permanent)
Retractable Roof Stadium: +10 Fan Interest (5 years), +1 Market Size (permanent), +1 Fan Loyalty (permanent)
This means that a team moving into their new open, grass field stadium will have their Fan Interest set to a minimum of 85 prior to Opening Day - but stadium bonuses bring that to 95. If a team's fan interest is above the minimum, the bonuses still take effect.
Independent of a team’s troubles on the field, a new stadium is a good way to keep your fans excited and give them a reason to purchase tickets as you head into each new season. Of course, they are not a cure-all for revenue woes, as they can take up to five years to finish "paying off." In the long term, however, stadium construction makes financial sense. Think of it as a long-term investment.
New stadiums come with a 15-year contract. Teams may not move out of their newly built stadium for 15 seasons.
Relocation:
The Commissioner will keep a list updated of various cities/markets that are available for relocation. If a team wishes to relocate, they must first submit their plan to the Commissioner, complete with New Stadium Construction plans, Team Name Change (if any) and New Logo or Jersey designs. If the Commissioner approves, the proposal will be voted on by the league. If the proposal passes (more than 50% of the league approves), the team will relocate upon completion of their new stadium.
If you joined the league after the start of the 2013 Season, you may not relocate a franchise until you've been a member of the league for five seasons, or receive a special exemption from the Commissioner.
Relocation maintains a new stadium’s Fan Interest effects, but will drop the team’s Fan Loyalty possible to 1/10 (Practically Nonexistant). The benefit to relocation is a possible Market Size upgrade, if the team moves to a larger market than it is coming from. Market size will be provided alongside any available market locations by the Commissioner.
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