Saluki Way Tax

 The portion of the sales tax funding bonds for the  the new stadium, Arena remodel and Saluki Way project is scheduled to expire in 2027. I would be willing to bet though, unless people start pushing for its expiration. The city will likely argue, as it did when the tax funding bonds for repairs at CCHS was due to expire, that it needed the funds from the tax and had already figured the revenue into its budget.

 The argument made at the time for passing the sales tax increase was that the enhancements to the campus would attract more students and draw more people to campus to attend events in the new stadium and remodeled Arena, despite evidence that revenues do not increase when tax payer money goes to fund sportscapes and attendance at SIUC has trended downward for 3 decades. Still it will be easier for the council to argue it needs the money from the tax and vote to extend the ordinance that established it, rather than letting it expire and passing a new one. 

Stadium Naming

I remember naming rights to SIUC's football and basketball stadiums were included as part of the Saluki Way funding tax. The original estimate to purchase the naming rights was up to $10 million, however they wound up going, about a decade after the original proposal was passed, for about $4-$5 million. I spoke with a couple of other bankers in the area last year after the rights were sold and they could not see how Banterra would get enough benefit from the naming rights to the Arena to justify the $4 million paid

SIU Arena Naming

In case you missed it, Banterra Bank bought the naming rights to the SIUC Arena for $4 million over the next 10 years, with the possibility of another million if enough people sign up for SIUC credit cards issues by Banterra. I talked with one other banker I know who said that, not only did they not get offered the opportunity to buy the rights to the Arena but were quite glad that SIUC had not approached them as they do not think Banterra will get enough value out of the naming rights to justify a $4 million payment.

Saluki Way Sales Tax

Some years ago, when the Carbondale city council increased the sales tax for the purpose of donating $20 million to SIUC for the purpose of funding the Saluki Way project, proponents of the increase had two arguments:

1. replacing the hulk that was McAndrew Stadium with a brand new football stadium and remodeling the Arena, along with the additional construction comprising the Saluki Way project would draw more students to the university, thus benefiting the community as a whole by increasing the customer base for businesses in Carbondale.  That hasn't worked so well.

2. Building the sports complex would draw more people into town to attend games. These people would then spend money, thus driving up sales tax revenue. That hasn't worked so well, either.

However, so as not to end the evening on a down note, here are some pictures of cute cats.