Dolphins and Miami-Dade County closing in on stadium deal

The Miami Dolphins may finally be getting the public funding support for Sun Life Stadium upgrades, after multiple plans and negotiations with the NFL, the Florida Legislature, and the Miami-Dade County leadership. According to a Miami Herald report, Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez spent several hours with the team on Friday, and is hoping to have the agreement complete over the weekend.

After plans asking for a private-public split for the $400 million renovations and an idea for a tax break for the team both failed, the current propsal has Dolphins owner Stephen Ross paying for the entire stadium upgrade, with the county then paying the Dolphins whenever the stadium attracts major sporting events, such as the Super Bowl, college National Championship Game and Playoffs, and World Cup matches. The payments are expected to be between $3- and $5-million per event, with an undiscolsed annual cap on the payments. The mayor stated the team and county are "close to agreeing to a deal."

Any agreement would still need to be approved by the county commission. The NFL recently approved financing for a portion of anticipated bill.

The 27-year-old Sun Life Stadium has been effectively taken out of the NFL's Super Bowl rotation due to the stadium's condition. According to plans laid out last year, the work would include a new canopy over the seating areas, moving 3,600 seats closer to the field, adding high definition lighting, new scoreboards in each corner of the stadium, upgraded seats, and improved amenities and food services.

The deal is expected to go before the county commission in the next few weeks.