People in Atlanta are not happy with the prospect of a new Atlanta Braves stadium in Cobb County, and one group plans to take some extreme action.
The Atlanta Tea Party Patriots plan to file a lawsuit against the Cobb County Board of Commissioners to block construction of the new stadium, according to Bloomberg. The chapter takes issue with the fact that construction of the $672 million stadium will be partially paid for by taxpayer dollars. $300 million in taxpayer dollars, to be exact.
Debbie Dooley, who heads the Tea Party group in Atlanta, told Bloomberg that the deal represents an unconstitutional use of taxpayer money and will set a bad precedent.
“If Cobb County is allowed to get away with this, you can bet other counties will do everything in their power to circumvent a vote by the people for something like this,” Dooley said.
The Braves will pay for 55 percent of the stadium, with Cobb County’s $300 million contribution coming from taxes on things like hotels and rental cars, along with a redistribution of property taxes, according to Yahoo! Sports. Because no new taxes were created, local taxpayers had no chance to vote on the measure.
The Atlanta Tea Party joins the ranks of people who are displeased with the Braves’ move from Turner Field to the suburbs. Local fans who live in Atlanta proper aren’t happy to see their team leave the city and environmentalists are unhappy with the fact that the stadium will be nearly inaccessible by public transportation — increasing traffic and pollution in the area.
The Braves announced plans for the new suburban stadium in November, and the team plans to be ready to play there in 2017.
Photo via Facebook/Atlanta Tea Party Patriots
