Nov 22, 2008 7:31 am US/Eastern
Judge Issues Final Ruling In Marlins Ballpark Case
A Recent Florida Supreme Court Ruling Lead To The Favorable Marlins Decision In Which Local Governments Were Given More Room In Passing Projects Without First Receiving Voter Approval
MIAMI (CBS4) ―
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A sketch of the proposed Marlins Stadium at the former site of Miami's Orange Bowl.
The Florida Marlins are a big step closer to getting their new downtown Miami ballpark after a judge rejected the last piece of a lawsuit challenging the project.
Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Jeri Beth Cohen said in an order released Friday that no voter referendum was required for the stadium's financing plan. The ruling tracks a decision in September by the Florida Supreme Court in a similar case.
Cohen earlier ruled for the Marlins and city and county officials on other claims in the lawsuit challenging the plan for the stadium and other projects by auto dealer Norman Braman. Braman has promised to appeal.
The Marlins hope to begin play in 2011 in the new 37,000-seat stadium on the site of the old Orange Bowl in Little Havana.
Braman's lawsuit contends the County's Megaplan proposal improperly diverts money intended to fix urban blight and should be put to a public vote.
The Megaplan project includes construction of a new $515 million, 37,000-seat, retractable-roof stadium for the Marlins. It also includes plans for construction of a tunnel to the Port of Miami, a park at Bicentennial Park, the payoff of a large construction debt at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts and possibly the creation of a streetcar system.
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