Question remains: Is it worth the money?

Students debated the value of civic pride against putting arena money toward local economic problems.
By ROGER G. SMITH
CITY HALL REPORTER
HOWLAND -- Major league sports make up a minuscule .009 percent of the national economy.
Don't, however, minimize sports' importance to Gary Dagres, Natalie Black, Zach Warrender, Mike Wiseman and Melissa Nero.
The five area high school seniors and others their age largely will decide if the proposed downtown Youngstown civic center succeeds or fails.
The students think differently about the proposed arena and the money that would build it, but they all agree it's an important issue for the future.
The Industrial Information Institute for Education brought together the five youths and 100 other teachers and seniors from 27 area high schools.
The institute's high school economic affairs seminar Thursday at Avalon Inn focused on the financial impact of developing local sports stadiums and arenas.
Economic role: Dr. Phillip Saunders, a retired economics professor at Indiana University, outlined the role sports plays in the economy.
Major league football, baseball, basketball and hockey are a combined $9 billion industry. That pales compared to the $10 trillion gross domestic product.
There is little pure economic gain for the $22 billion spent since 1990 -- two-third of it taxpayer money -- building arenas and stadiums, Saunders argued. The money ultimately is redistributed to team owners, he said. Half of major league owners are among the 400 wealthiest Americans.
Jobs associated with stadiums and arenas -- including part-time, low wage ushers and ticket-takers -- add up to between 100 and 200 full-time equivalent per team, he said.
"Nine billion dollars is a lot of money. But the point is ... the attention it gets is way out of line," he said. "The net result is nearly zero."
Troubling: On the local level, that troubles Dagres, 18, of Badger High School.
The nearly 30 million federal and state dollars gathered so far for Youngstown's project might be great for the downtown, he said. But that money could be better spent stabilizing the region's industrial base, he said.
Dagres pointed to General Motors Lordstown and bankrupt steel company CSC Ltd. as examples. A downtown arena generates only "tertiary economic activity," he said.
Students were startled by how few jobs and little new revenue a new stadium generates, compared to the money government puts in.
Civic pride and the spending of tax dollars need to be compared with the region's priorities, said Warrender, 18, from Sharpsville High School.
A boost: But the area needs such a building because there is so little to do for fun, said Nero, 18, from Lowellville High School.
Having a new building featuring minor-league sports and concerts should give the region a big psychological boost and improve downtown, she said.
Renewed pride will breed progress, said Black, 17, from United Local High School.
Wiseman, 18, also from Sharpsville High School, questions how much civic pride the project really will engender, however.
Keeping the arena near Youngstown State University is essential to him. He's a big college basketball fan and would hate to see YSU's teams leave campus to play its games. A campus is integral to college sports, Wiseman said.
Some doubt an arena downtown can draw enough interest to keep it running.
Warrender doesn't see 10,000 people flocking to most events. Such a building has to be booked solid with a variety of events to sustain itself in this market, Wiseman said. Black doesn't see Mahoning Valley residents ending their trips to Cleveland or Pittsburgh for minor-league sports or lower-level entertainment.
Most of the students aren't bothered that taxpayer money will fund at least three-quarters of the projected $40 million cost. Both business and quality of life will improve if the building goes up, which is a reasonable use for taxes, the students said.
Warrender, however, would be irritated if he lived elsewhere and knew his federal tax dollars were going toward a sports arena in Youngstown.