Cities, Sports, and Economic Change: A Retrospective Assessment

Abstract

AbstractThrough the 1970s and 1990s virtually all central cities and many larger suburban and edge communities focused downtown economic development efforts on some aspect of the hospitality sector. Associated with this trend, the building of facilities for professional sports teams has been a cornerstone of redevelopment programs for almost 30 years. Smaller cities that watched the efforts of Baltimore, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Indianapolis, and Phoenix have now focused their attention on minor league teams and "second tier sports." Cities rely on sports facilities for redevelopment strategies even though numerous independent analyses indicate that these structures and teams are not correlated with regional economic development. If sports facilities shift economic activity to an area that needs redevelopment, then the issue is not whether overall economic activity increased or decreased, but whether the vitality or centrality of the downtown area was enhanced or sustained. Through an examination of outcomes for four cities, the ability of a sports strategy to affect development patterns is assessed.