Titans' new stadium proposal: Who's paying for it

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — It’s hard to imagine what $2 billion looks like, but in this instance, it looks like a new stadium for the Tennessee Titans.

A new agreement between Nashville’s Mayor John Cooper and the Tennessee Titans has been met that would result in a new “enclosed” stadium for the team.

Under the proposal, Mayor Cooper said the stadium will be paid for by the team, the state, tourists and revenue from around the stadium and campus. “Not by your family,” he emphasized.

The city hired an independent group, Venue Solutions Group (VSG), to conduct a thorough assessment of the current stadium’s condition and the cost of maintaining it for the remainder of the lease, which ends in 2039.

The 1996 lease stipulates the city provides a “first-class” stadium for another 17 years.

In a memo sent to the city government, VSG outlined a preliminary report showing it would cost the city between $1.75 and 1.95 billion to renovate Nissan Stadium as a “first class condition” facility.

VSG’s final report will be provided to the city at the end of this month.

Meanwhile, the new agreement between the city and the Titans creates a new lease, returns 66 acres of land to the city – including Nissan Stadium, and provides a new stadium that relieves taxpayers of at least $1.75 billion.

“This new stadium proposal protects Metro taxpayers by not spending a single dollar that could
be spent elsewhere on our core priorities like education and public safety,” said Mayor John
Cooper in a news release. “Doing nothing was not a legal option for us, and renovating the current stadium proved to be financially irresponsible.”

So, who’s going to pay for it?

According to the news release, $840 million for the new stadium and any construction overruns will come from the Titans, NFL and personal seat license (PSL) sales. Then there’s the one-time contribution from the state of $500 million. Plus, a potential 1% hospitality tax, if the stadium gets built. The final piece of the puzzle, totaling $760 million, comes from revenue bonds issued by the Metro Sports Authority, “to be repaid through the revenue streams described above, all of which, per state statute, can only be used for this project or other stadium-related costs.”

“When my father brought this team to Tennessee 25 years ago, I don’t think he could have
imagined a better home for our organization,” said Titans controlling owner Amy Adams
Strunk in a news release. “The way the people of Tennessee have embraced this team as their own is truly something special, and I am thrilled that with this new agreement, we will cement our future here in Nashville for another generation.”

If the deal gets approved, the new stadium will be built just east of Nissan Stadium, and the lease will run for at least 30 years. At the end of the lease, Metro will own the stadium.

“Nashville’s new stadium will be a game changer for the community, enhancing the national
and international reputation of our great city and state and delivering world-class events to our
doorstep that we could never have dreamed of 25 years ago,” said Titans President and CEO,
Burke Nihill in a news release.

The deal also covers the cost of demolition for the current Nissan Stadium as well as stadium-related infrastructure.

The new stadium could be up and running as soon as 2026.