MARYLAND MATTERS: A deal to keep the Baltimore Orioles in the team’s iconic Camden Yards home moved a step closer to reality Monday morning.
The Maryland Stadium Authority voted unanimously, with two abstentions, to approve a lease contract that could keep the team in Baltimore for the next three decades. The vote is the first of two scheduled for Monday as both the state and team rush to consummate a lease extension before the end of the year.
“I had reservations throughout this process, but I can confidently say that that we ended up in a very good place and I think that we now have the ability to define the issues, move forward playing baseball, work out the other issues , and hopefully, another 30 years of Orioles baseball,” said Joseph Bryce, a member of the Maryland Stadium Authority board.
The agreement that awaits a vote by the Board of Public Works does not resolve all the issues between the team and the state. The board, chaired by Gov. Wes Moore (D), is scheduled to meet at 3:15 p.m. after a news conference with state officials.
The deal’s length, however, remains in flux and hinges on the team and state’s ability to agree on complicated neighborhood development plans in the next three years.
If everything goes to plan, the team will continue to play at the Baltimore stadium until Dec. 31, 2053. There are also up to four team options to extend that deal for five years each.
An escape provision allows the team to get out in as little as 15 years if negotiations over development rights around the stadium are not completed by Dec. 31, 2027.
Any development agreement requires the approval of the General Assembly’s Legislative Policy Committee and the Board of Public Works.
The deal approved Monday is the latest in an effort by Moore to secure the long-term future of the team in Baltimore.
In September, Moore appeared on the video screen in center field above a statement announcing a 30-year deal. That announcement was premature as details were released that clarified the two sides signed a memorandum of understanding outlining details to be worked out instead of a legally enforceable lease.
John Angelos, Orioles chair and managing partner, desires to develop state-owned land adjoining the stadium.
The “live, work and play” entertainment district would be like to The Battery in Atlanta near the home of the Atlanta Braves or around Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, home of the Texas Rangers.
Angelos led a tour of the Atlanta venue for Moore earlier this year.
The development in Texas was key to drawing the All-Star game to the city. It is hoped that a similar entertainment district in Baltimore would bring the mid-summer game back to Baltimore for the first time since 1993, a year after Camden Yards opened.
Such a development may also increase the value of the team should the Angelos family seek to sell the team
Under the terms of new lease, the team will pay no rent but agrees to maintain the stadium under the oversight of the Maryland Stadium Authority. The team will continue to pay admissions and amusement taxes, sales taxes, and applicable property taxes. The amounts are based on ticket sales.
The Orioles get access to the $600 million in bond money set aside in 2023, with oversight from the state. No bond money is being requested yet, but the agreement requires that the lease remain in place until the bonds are paid off — typically a 15-year period.
The team also agrees to ensure that all contracting at the stadium and related future development meets state diversity-ownership goals.
The deal also continues provisions in the current lease granting the team stadium naming rights.
