Good morning. This is Leadoff, the early buzz in Atlanta sports.
The North Port (Fla.) City Commission voted Tuesday night on whether to authorize the city manager to continue negotiations with the Braves for a new spring-training facility there.
There was little suspense about the outcome of the vote with all four commissioners having donned Braves jerseys by that point in the meeting.
Indeed, the vote was 4-0 in favor of negotiating.
The meeting — streamed on the city’s website — completed a doubleheader Tuesday for the Braves’ efforts to secure a deal with taxpayer funding for a new spring facility in the Sarasota County city of North Port. Earlier in the day, the Sarasota County Commission also heard a presentation about the project and reacted favorably, although no vote was taken by that group.
There are still months of negotiations and political processes ahead before decisions are rendered on whether North Port, Sarasota County and the state of Florida will approve the combined $45 million-plus in public funding the Braves are seeking. According to terms discussed Tuesday, the proposed deal calls for $22.1 million from the county, $20 million from the state and $4 million to $5 million from North Port. (Click here for more details on the Sarasota County Commission meeting.)
But it was clear from Tuesday’s meetings that Sarasota County and North Port are enthusiastic about trying to do a deal, within certain parameters.
“Let’s play ball,” North Port Mayor Linda Yates said at Tuesday night’s meeting. “Let’s get to work, and hopefully let’s see something happen pretty soon.”
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Atlanta's host committee for next season's College Football Playoff national championship game here unveiled Tuesday a year-long marketing and social media campaign aimed at energizing the community for the event.
The “I’m In” campaign will feature various people, from city leaders to celebrities to behind-the-scenes employees, involved in hosting the game.
“The campaign is designed to tap into the everyday passion Atlanta has for college football and rally the community to embrace the big game,” said Atlanta Sports Council president Dan Corso, who also is president of the Atlanta Football Host Committee board of directors.
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Further reading:
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