How much will Husky Stadium renovation cost you?

December 24, 2009 at 12:19 pm · Filed under Husky Stadium ·Tagged Husky Stadium, Washington Football

As we enter 2010 the University of Washington will again ask the state legislature permission to use existing tax revenue for the Husky Stadium renovation. The current tax break down is as follows:

Years	Revenue Source	Explanation	Estimated Amount
2013-2015	0.5% food and beverage tax	Currently used to pay Safeco field bonds	$65 million
2013-2015	2% car rental tax	Currently used to pay Safeco field bonds	$15 million
2015-2028	1% car rental tax	Mainly used towards Kingdome bonds	$13 million
2021-2028	2% hotel tax	Currently used for the Kingdome and Qwest field	$37 million
-	Sales tax deferral	Sales tax is deferred during renovation.  This will be repaid after completion.	$20 million

If these “tourism taxes” as they are known are directed towards the renovation of the 90 year old facility, how much will the typical King County resident pay?

Food and beverage tax

I’m not the best cook in the world so I eat out often, perhaps three times a week. A typical restaurant for me is Red Robin, Coho café, Claim Jumper, etc. So I can spend $20.00 per sitting. At 60 bucks a week I’m easily spending $3,000 a year at restaurants. My tax would then be $15.00 (0.5% of $3,000) each year for three years. Total payment: $45.

2% car rental tax

How often do people rent cars where they live? Not very often, but I have done it on occasion to use on long driving vacations. Renting a Ford sedan for a week could be $300. My 2% contribution comes out to be: $6

1% car rental tax

From 2015 to 2028 we will see a 1% car rental tax (down from the 2% tax). For the sake of argument that’s again assume I rent a couple of cars for a week each during this timeframe. That’s two cars at $300 each. A 1% tax makes my total payment: $6

2% hotel tax

How often do I stay in hotels in King County? Let me think…mmm… never. Well okay, that’s not really true. My insurance company put me up in a couple hotels when my condo was being renovated – but I didn’t have to foot that bill. But let’s just say I rent a hotel for a couple nights during this timeframe that cost me $200. 2% of that: $4.

Total Cost

So how much will the Husky Stadium renovation cost me? $45+$6+$6+$4 = $61. A year? No, $61 TOTAL. That’s paying $61 over 16 years, or under $4 a year – roughly a quarter a month if you like.

How does this compare to my other costs? Here is a chart that spells out my monthly, yearly, and 16-year costs of common monthly payments (gasoline, iPhone, cable TV, Starbucks).

Item	Monthly cost	Yearly cost	16-year cost
Gasoline	$150	$1,800	$28,800
iPhone	$100	$1200	$19,200
Comcast cable TV	$60	$720	$11,520
Starbucks (once/wk)	$12	$144	$2,304
Starbucks change	$1.45 ($.37 x 4)	$17.4	$278
Husky Stadium Renovation	$0.32	$3.81	$61

Plotted as a Histogram it’s easy to see how minimal these taxes really are for the residents of King County:

Where will the residence of this county find this money? How about ordering water instead of a soda a few times a year? Or ordering a tall instead of the grande when you visit Starbucks? Or try the matinee instead of an evening movie every now and then. These are insignificant things to give up.

For the opportunity to renovate the oldest stadium west of the Mississippi – to help the football team who has faithfully entertained Western Washington for over a century – to assist the team with two national championships, seven rose bowl titles and owner of the nation’s longest unbeaten streak – to lend a hand to a team that won’t abandon the faithful fans of this state for another city – $4 is the deal of the century.

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