Yankee Stadium Parking Garage Nears Foreclosure As Fans Opt For Cheaper Sites, Subway Schlep; Bondholders Backing Project May Be Left Holding The Bag

In The Bronx, New York, WNBC-TV Channel 4 reports:

• On the day of the Yankees home opener last week, the stadium was packed with more than 49,000 fans, but inside a nearby parking garage on 153rd Street, three of the four floors were empty. Parking cashier Janee Addison estimated about 20 percent of the 2,300 spots were actually being used, and that was during the third inning, when even the latecomers had scanned their ticket.
• The garage, along with about a dozen other lots and garages, was built with millions of dollars in tax-free bonds by a firm called Bronx Parking Development Company, to accompany the new stadium. Last year, the Bronx Parking Development Company's average game-day lot was 43 percent full. This year, on the day of the Yankees' home opener, the garages increased the price of a parking space by $12 to $35, amid the sluggish demand.
• On March 23, the company filed paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission notifying them that it will likely default on its tax-free bonds within 60 days.
• Joyce Hogi, a South Bronx resident who lives near the stadium, is not surprised. According to Hogi, many Yankees fans began opting last year to park in a garage attached to a nearby shopping center. It is cheaper, she said, and nearly as close to the stadium. And unlike the garages owned by Bronx Parking, the shopping center garages don't kick out fans two hours after games end.

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• The company was able to strike a deal last year with private bondholders to delay foreclosure on the garages. It is unclear if the bondholders will grant another waiver this year.

For the story, see Bronx Garage Near Yankee Stadium Nearly Empty on Home Opener (Neighbors say the garage, built with millions of dollars in tax-free bonds, was a wasteful project; On the day of the Yankees home opener, more than 49,000 fans packed the stadium. The skies were clear. The No. 4 subway was crowded. But the garage was nearly empty).