Public information stays Private in Partnerships
Stadium plans are kept secret
September 08, 2006
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Copyright 2006
ARLINGTON -- The Dallas Cowboys have declined to release architectural drawings of the new publicly funded stadium under construction in Arlington, saying that the plans should remain confidential under the Texas Homeland Security Act.
In a letter to the Texas attorney general's office dated Wednesday, the Cowboys also argue that the stadium plans should not be released to the public because they are a trade secret and subject to ongoing economic development negotiations with the city. Their release 'would cause substantial competitive harm,' the letter from Forrest Roan, a San Antonio attorney, states.
Cowboys spokesman Brett Daniels declined to answer specific questions about the decision to withhold the plans.
'At this time, we believe it's premature to release the documents because of proprietary business practice information as well as issues with security,' Daniels said.
Arlington taxpayers will pay $325 million of the stadium's $650 million construction cost through increased sales taxes. Most of the stadium bowl southeast of North Collins Street and Randol Mill Road has been excavated. Three cranes have been erected on site to move concrete columns into the bowl. As of July, $118.1 million has been spent on the project, with the city paying $58.9 million.
Team officials have said the stadium will open in time for the 2009 season. Preliminary plans have shown the stadium will seat about 75,000 for games, with the ability to seat 100,000 for other events with seats in the open end zones. The structure is to be about 20 stories tall.
Despite the progress, Arlington residents have not seen any drawings or architectural renderings of the complex since passing the referendum in 2004. Black tarps on a chain-link fence that surrounds the site prevent the public from looking into the 50-foot-deep stadium bowl.
Bruce Deramus, chairman of Concerned Taxpayers of Arlington, said the public has a right to see the plans. Deramus noted that the city used its eminent-domain power to force owners to sell their land for the project.
'The whole thing has been shrouded in mystery, and they try to keep the taxpayers out of everything. It bothers me greatly,' Deramus said. 'You want to see what the thing is going to look like, and in my opinion it is all right to see it.'
Arlington Mayor Robert Cluck has said on various occasions that he has seen what the stadium will look like. He could not be reached for comment Thursday.
City Councilwoman Sheri Capehart said the stadium drawings should be released, but she said she did not know enough 'about what is truly proprietary' to comment on the Cowboys' argument.
'At some point the public is going to have to see what is being built,' Capehart said. 'I would hope that it is sooner rather than later.'
The Star-Telegram submitted a request under the Public Information Act to the city Aug. 7 seeking access to or copies of the stadium plans. The city forwarded the request to Attorney General Greg Abbott for a ruling on the issue after the Cowboys argued that the documents should be withheld because the team is a third party allowed to keep information confidential.
In its request, the Star-Telegram cited a city bond document that stated that the city and the Cowboys 'jointly own the architectural drawings, renderings, designs, plans and specifications related to the Cowboys complex.'
In its letter to the attorney general, Cowboys attorneys called the stadium 'critical infrastructure' that needs to be protected under the Texas Homeland Security Act because technical details could reveal the stadium's vulnerability to an act of terrorism.
Technical details, however, are already publicly available at local chambers of commerce and at City Hall as the Cowboys apply for construction permits and give potential bidders specifications for the project. For example, the structural concrete bid package available at the Fort Worth Metropolitan Black Chamber of Commerce shows eight levels for the stadium -- including the Silver Star level and the Hall of Fame level -- with about 70 rows of seating in four main tiers.
City Councilman Robert Rivera, a longtime stadium supporter, said he saw a form at the construction site a couple months ago that was displayed to show the size and site position of the stadium, but not how it will look. He said he's looking forward to seeing the elevation and site plans and architectural plans as soon as they are ready.
This is not the first time that a third party has claimed confidentiality in withholding structural plans for a public project.
In 2005, the Texas Transportation Department and private contractor Cintra Zachry contended that their planning agreement to build a toll road between Dallas-Fort Worth and San Antonio should remain confidential. Several media organizations filed requests under the Public Information Act to view documents related to the Trans-Texas Corridor project, and the attorney general ruled in their favor.
Cintra Zachry and the Transportation Department then filed a lawsuit in state district court seeking to overturn the attorney general's ruling. The case is pending and the documents have not been released to the public.
In June 2004, the Texas attorney general ruled that the city of Roanoke had to release public documents describing the exterior elevations, landscaping plan and a tree survey for a Citibank data processing center in the Alliance business park. The city had argued that the documents were confidential because the center was 'critical infrastructure' and as such its details were protected from public view by the state Homeland Security Act.
Randy Sanders, president of the nonprofit Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas in Dallas, said such confidentiality arguments relating to public information requests may increase as local governments do more business with private companies. The issue, he said, is one his organization and other public information advocates may need to raise during the next state legislative session.
'When the Cowboys get in bed with the government, it would seem to me they should have to follow the same conditions that a governmental agency does,' Sanders said.
Staff writer Neil Strassman contributed to this report.
Public-private stadium
In 2004, Arlington voters passed a referendum that allowed public financing for the new $650 million Dallas Cowboys stadium. The agreement between the city and the Cowboys stipulated that:
The city's contribution of $325 million would be funded through a half-cent sales tax. About $300 million in bonds were issued last year for the city's portion of the stadium costs.
The city issued an additional $147.8 million in bonds for the Cowboys portion of the stadium costs that will be paid for by a 10 percent admissions tax and $3 parking fee.
The Cowboys will pay for any cost overruns because the city's share is capped at $325 million.
The city will receive a $2 million annual rent payment and 5 percent of any naming rights deal from the Cowboys.
The Cowboys will fund a $16.5 million nonprofit organization called the Arlington Youth Foundation over 33 years.
The team is required to manage the stadium and perform maintenance during its 30-year lease.
SOURCE: Star-Telegram archives
© 2006 Fort Worth Star-Telegram: www.dfw.com
September 08, 2006
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Copyright 2006
ARLINGTON -- The Dallas Cowboys have declined to release architectural drawings of the new publicly funded stadium under construction in Arlington, saying that the plans should remain confidential under the Texas Homeland Security Act.
In a letter to the Texas attorney general's office dated Wednesday, the Cowboys also argue that the stadium plans should not be released to the public because they are a trade secret and subject to ongoing economic development negotiations with the city. Their release 'would cause substantial competitive harm,' the letter from Forrest Roan, a San Antonio attorney, states.
Cowboys spokesman Brett Daniels declined to answer specific questions about the decision to withhold the plans.
'At this time, we believe it's premature to release the documents because of proprietary business practice information as well as issues with security,' Daniels said.
Arlington taxpayers will pay $325 million of the stadium's $650 million construction cost through increased sales taxes. Most of the stadium bowl southeast of North Collins Street and Randol Mill Road has been excavated. Three cranes have been erected on site to move concrete columns into the bowl. As of July, $118.1 million has been spent on the project, with the city paying $58.9 million.
Team officials have said the stadium will open in time for the 2009 season. Preliminary plans have shown the stadium will seat about 75,000 for games, with the ability to seat 100,000 for other events with seats in the open end zones. The structure is to be about 20 stories tall.
Despite the progress, Arlington residents have not seen any drawings or architectural renderings of the complex since passing the referendum in 2004. Black tarps on a chain-link fence that surrounds the site prevent the public from looking into the 50-foot-deep stadium bowl.
Bruce Deramus, chairman of Concerned Taxpayers of Arlington, said the public has a right to see the plans. Deramus noted that the city used its eminent-domain power to force owners to sell their land for the project.
'The whole thing has been shrouded in mystery, and they try to keep the taxpayers out of everything. It bothers me greatly,' Deramus said. 'You want to see what the thing is going to look like, and in my opinion it is all right to see it.'
Arlington Mayor Robert Cluck has said on various occasions that he has seen what the stadium will look like. He could not be reached for comment Thursday.
City Councilwoman Sheri Capehart said the stadium drawings should be released, but she said she did not know enough 'about what is truly proprietary' to comment on the Cowboys' argument.
'At some point the public is going to have to see what is being built,' Capehart said. 'I would hope that it is sooner rather than later.'
The Star-Telegram submitted a request under the Public Information Act to the city Aug. 7 seeking access to or copies of the stadium plans. The city forwarded the request to Attorney General Greg Abbott for a ruling on the issue after the Cowboys argued that the documents should be withheld because the team is a third party allowed to keep information confidential.
In its request, the Star-Telegram cited a city bond document that stated that the city and the Cowboys 'jointly own the architectural drawings, renderings, designs, plans and specifications related to the Cowboys complex.'
In its letter to the attorney general, Cowboys attorneys called the stadium 'critical infrastructure' that needs to be protected under the Texas Homeland Security Act because technical details could reveal the stadium's vulnerability to an act of terrorism.
Technical details, however, are already publicly available at local chambers of commerce and at City Hall as the Cowboys apply for construction permits and give potential bidders specifications for the project. For example, the structural concrete bid package available at the Fort Worth Metropolitan Black Chamber of Commerce shows eight levels for the stadium -- including the Silver Star level and the Hall of Fame level -- with about 70 rows of seating in four main tiers.
City Councilman Robert Rivera, a longtime stadium supporter, said he saw a form at the construction site a couple months ago that was displayed to show the size and site position of the stadium, but not how it will look. He said he's looking forward to seeing the elevation and site plans and architectural plans as soon as they are ready.
This is not the first time that a third party has claimed confidentiality in withholding structural plans for a public project.
In 2005, the Texas Transportation Department and private contractor Cintra Zachry contended that their planning agreement to build a toll road between Dallas-Fort Worth and San Antonio should remain confidential. Several media organizations filed requests under the Public Information Act to view documents related to the Trans-Texas Corridor project, and the attorney general ruled in their favor.
Cintra Zachry and the Transportation Department then filed a lawsuit in state district court seeking to overturn the attorney general's ruling. The case is pending and the documents have not been released to the public.
In June 2004, the Texas attorney general ruled that the city of Roanoke had to release public documents describing the exterior elevations, landscaping plan and a tree survey for a Citibank data processing center in the Alliance business park. The city had argued that the documents were confidential because the center was 'critical infrastructure' and as such its details were protected from public view by the state Homeland Security Act.
Randy Sanders, president of the nonprofit Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas in Dallas, said such confidentiality arguments relating to public information requests may increase as local governments do more business with private companies. The issue, he said, is one his organization and other public information advocates may need to raise during the next state legislative session.
'When the Cowboys get in bed with the government, it would seem to me they should have to follow the same conditions that a governmental agency does,' Sanders said.
Staff writer Neil Strassman contributed to this report.
Public-private stadium
In 2004, Arlington voters passed a referendum that allowed public financing for the new $650 million Dallas Cowboys stadium. The agreement between the city and the Cowboys stipulated that:
The city's contribution of $325 million would be funded through a half-cent sales tax. About $300 million in bonds were issued last year for the city's portion of the stadium costs.
The city issued an additional $147.8 million in bonds for the Cowboys portion of the stadium costs that will be paid for by a 10 percent admissions tax and $3 parking fee.
The Cowboys will pay for any cost overruns because the city's share is capped at $325 million.
The city will receive a $2 million annual rent payment and 5 percent of any naming rights deal from the Cowboys.
The Cowboys will fund a $16.5 million nonprofit organization called the Arlington Youth Foundation over 33 years.
The team is required to manage the stadium and perform maintenance during its 30-year lease.
SOURCE: Star-Telegram archives
© 2006 Fort Worth Star-Telegram:
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