The Miami Dolphins have canceled plans to renovate Sun Life Stadium.
The Dolphins were hoping to get some public funding, but the Florida House of Representatives didn’t pass the proposal. Without the public’s help, the team has announced that it was cancelling its plans to renovate the stadium.
SB Nation reports that the bill would have raised the hotel bed tax cap from six to seven percent. The team was also hoping to get about $90 million i sales tax rebates over the next three decades.
CEO Mike Dee said that the stadium issue will have to be addressed eventually and that it was possible that the team finds a new home in the future.
Dee said : “The Dolphins are one of the only franchises in the NFL that don’t have a long-term lease with their community … At some point, somebody’s going to buy the franchise from (Dolphins owner Stephen Ross), and clearly the stadium is the first thing they would need to address.”
Dee blamed Florida House Speaker Will Weatherford for denying fans of the Dolphins a newly renovated stadium. Weatherford didn’t address the proposal before the end of the legislation session on Friday.
Dee said : “At the end of the day, this abuse of power, I believe, will follow (Weatherford’s) career for a long time.”
Thanks to all who worked so hard to keep #MiamiFirst . Our efforts were cut short before voters could decide but the politics… (1/2)
— Mike Dee (@MikeDeeFins) May 4, 2013
…in Tally do not take away from the experience of meeting so many great members of our community who care deeply about the future of Miami
— Mike Dee (@MikeDeeFins) May 4, 2013