Gilbert mayor won’t fund Milwaukee Brewers spring training stadium
Aug 9, 2017, 1:30 PM
Milwaukee Brewers right fielder Brett Phillips dives for but misses a double by Seattle Mariners' Nelson Cruz during the fourth inning of a spring training baseball game Thursday, March 2, 2017, in Peoria, Ariz. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
(AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
PHOENIX — The mayor of Gilbert put her foot down Wednesday and said she would not support her town building a spring training home for the Milwaukee Brewers.
Mayor Jenn Daniels said the deal — which would put taxpayers reportedly on the hook for $70 million of a $90 million stadium — was just too expensive.
“We are a financially conservative council who takes our fiduciary responsibility to the community very seriously,” she said in a statement. “With this in mind, I cannot support the use of public funds to build this stadium.”
Daniels’ statement was likely the final nail in the coffin on the issue for at least the foreseeable future.
Though the team has said it believes “there may be a great deal of community support for the Brewers to relocate in the town of Gilbert,” it said it was working to stay at Maryvale Baseball Park near 51st Avenue and Indian School Road in Phoenix for the long haul.
Gilbert spokeswoman Dana Berchman said the town had mulled the idea, but were not actively discussing a move with the Brewers.
“Gilbert is not currently negotiating with the Milwaukee Brewers so there isn’t anything to discuss at this point,” she said.
