The third time was the charm.
Miami-Dade Commissioners gave yet another sweetheart deal to yet another sports team Tuesday– the second in a month — as they voted 7-4 
to support a plan concocted by Mayor Carlos Gimenez in which the county will pay the billionaire owner of the Miami Dolphins millions of tourist tax dollars for events they would have anyway.
The approval of a “performance-based” bonus system under which owner the team will get a maximum of $5 million a year in payments for events like NCAA games and soccer matches — and, of course, future Super Bowls — means that owner Stephen Ross can now tap into a zero interest loan from the NFL to renovate SunLife Stadium and put a roof on it.
“I want to thank the Board of County Commissioners and Mayor Gimenez for approving this unique and creative plan to bring Super Bowls and other marquee events to Miami-Dade County,” Ross said in a statement.
You can almost hear the “whew.” I mean, this was their hail Mary pass.
The “creative” plan was also the third “best possible deal” that the mayor and Ross came up with to fleece taxpayers. First, they wanted to fund the $350 million project with tourist tax dollars, a plan that was shot down by legislators last year. Then, Ross actually proposed giving the county the run-down facility so he could stop paying about $4 million on taxes (this year, though we know that will go up, especially after the renovations).
This new deal sets up a tier system for what the county and Ross call “marquee event grants” that will not be paid until after said events. Super 
Bowls get $4 million. College football championships $3 million. Playoffs: $2 million. Soccer matches: $750,000.
“If they don’t perform, we don’t pay,” said Commissioner Barbara Jordan, who sponsored the Gimenez item for the mayor.
But really? Really? Isn’t it in their best interest to perform anyway? Who believes that if they had not gotten these public monies, the Dolphins owners would have thrown their hands up in the air and stopped seeking these high profile events? Anyone? Going once. Going twice.
And while the payments won’t start for another 10 years — when the mayor and commissioner are safely away from the dais — the team can start accumulating credits now. They could have a maximum of $30 million in credits in the “bank” by 2024, making them eligible for the full $5 million for the next six years — as they continue to bank more marquee events. The mayor has said that there is no guarantee they will get the funds anyway. Wanna bet?
And Ladra is not the only one who thinks so.
“I do not believe that a gentleman like Mr. Ross gets to where he is today by leaving money on the table,” said Commissioner Esteban Bovo, who ain’t tan bobo after all it seems, and raised the question about the credits that I bet Gimenez wanted to just slide by unnoticed.
Bovo, who was also skeptical about the fact that other events can be added to the tier system in the future, voted against the plan.
“At the end of the day, I think this is a private business,” Bovo said. “Our community has expressed they are not in favor.”
Bovo and Commissioners Xavier “Mayor Sir” Suarez and Juan “Zorro” Zapata said that they would rather see those same bed tax dollars 
used for transportation services, such as the Bay Link light rail connecting to Miami Beach or $500 million in identified and unfunded capital needs for bridges. The other commissioner who voted no was Vice Chair Lynda Bell, who has gotten at least $10,000 in her PAC from the Dolphhins, but she didn’t speak about it. She just voted no because she is facing the roughest re-election of all of them and she just knew this would become an issue in the race. Just like she voted against the Miami Heat deal once she saw they had all the votes they needed to pass.
Zapata smiled at former quarterback Dan Marino and a host of other players who showed up to be cheerleaders — “it’s good to have you in the audience” — but said that while he supported world class cultural and sports events, the infrastructure needs came first.
Suarez noted the $200 million shortfall that Gimenez keeps yelling about between cheering for his favorite lobbyists, er, I mean teams. “This is just not a good moment for this,” Suarez said, adding that he was told 452 positions that may have to be cut from just one department that is $42 million in the hole and the 10% pay cut that employees across the board have been threatened with.
Gimenez said that killing the deal would “not save any jobs this year” since the payments do not kick in until 2024. I guess it’s okay to pass the buck. Literally.
The commissioners who voted in favor gushed about what a great job the mayor did Commissioners Jean Monestime asked what’s the big deal? “We do provide incentives to business owners,” Monestime said, adding that the government of Brazil spent somewhere around $1.3 billion in infrastructure for the World Cup 2014.
Doesn’t he know that Ross is going after state sales tax rebates, perhaps an additional $2-$3 million a year in subsidies?
And I guess his mother never asked little boy Monestime if he’d throw himself off a bridge just ’cause his friends did.
After all, two wrongs don’t make a right.
But two sweet stadium deals do make a pattern.
Stadium score: Mayor Carlos Gimenez, 2; Joe Public, 0 added by Ladra on
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