R-Lev Gets Subpoenaed

Yankees' president Randy Levine was subpoenaed on Tuesday by Assemblyman Richard Brodsky (D-Westchester) to testify before a state assembly committee on Wednesday concerning monies spent on the new Yankee Stadium.

Brodsky is upset at the Yankees, and the New York City Industrial Development Authority, for what he sees as a lack of cooperation in providing documentation to back further funding requests by the Yankees.

Levine appeared on Mike Francesa's radio show to clear the air. Here are some excerpts.

Francesa: "Why has this become such a hot issue?"

Levine: "2 reasons- secondary financing, which is common and was contemplated all along... Every cent is being paid for by the Yankees"

Levine then took Brodsky to task for grand standing and distorting the facts. The facts are that the Yankees are spending 1.3 billion of their own money. New York City owns the ballpark and the Yankees are tenants. The Yankees responsible for all maintenance costs of the new Stadium.

Francesa: "The NYC Comptroller said an audit shows direct cost to the city is $325 million due to oversights and mistakes."

Levine: It's not the actual Stadium that he's referring to. As part of the arrangement, the city is building the infrastructure - brand new parks, parking garages, etc...Rising construction costs are effecting it. The Yankees get no revenue from the garages. In fact, despite spending $1.3 billion, the Yankees only get 600 parking spaces."

Francesa: "If you are paying with private financing, why going to the city?"

Levine: "The Stadium is being built with a tax exempt financing mechanism. We have a 43 year lease with the city. Since the Yankees are tenants, there are no property taxes. The Yankees will pay make payments on the bonds issued in lieu of a property tax."

Francesa: "Could this have done without the city's help?"

Levine: "No, because borrowing would have been so much higher it would have been impossible. You don't have to pay federal tax on the bonds as you would with a bank. The Yankees are also putting $225 million of their own money on top of the bond money."

So there you have it. You can listen to the entire interview on WFAN's website. The Stadium will actually cost $1.5 billion and these issues will probably be resolved pretty quickly. As Newsday reported, Mayor Bloomberg took a shot, through a spokesman, at Brodsky as well.

"I guess it makes for good political theater because it's the Yankees, but when it comes to valuable taxpayer dollars, decisions should be made on return, not rhetoric," Bloomberg spokesman Andrew Brent said.

Play Ball!