Seahawks' Value Estimated -- Study: Team Brings State $100 Million Yearly

The Seattle Seahawks generate $100 million in economic activity in Washington state each year - and are worth about the same to the region as the baseball-playing Seattle Mariners - according to an upcoming economic study.

The study, by Dick Conway and Bill Beyers, is part of King County's inquiry into the costs of renovating the Kingdome.

Conway said the study isn't quite complete, but that it will show the impact of the professional football team to be roughly the same as the Mariners.

Conway and Beyers have performed a number of similar estimates of the value of the Mariners to the area, and their studies were cited repeatedly last year as voters narrowly turned down a tax increase to pay for a new baseball stadium. The Legislature and County Council later agreed to a series of other tax increases, and a stadium district has been formed to go ahead with plans for a new ballpark.

Conway said that in 1993, when the Mariners drew just over 2 million fans to the Kingdome, they generated about $111.5 million in economic activity. Of that, he said, about $53 million was "new money" that probably wouldn't have been spent in King County had the team not been here.

Earlier this year, he estimated the Seahawks' value at about $84 million in business activity and $46 million in new money. Yesterday he said the Seahawks figures are probably closer to those of the Mariners. He said the final report likely will be combined with a county study of the cost of Kingdome renovations.

Conway explained that the Seahawks' value is similar to the Mariners despite the fact that the football team only plays 10 homes games a year, compared to baseball's 81 games, because football fans spend more money than baseball fans.

A football game is "much more of an event," with fans traveling from farther away. Also, because professional football shares television revenue, some of that money comes to the Seahawks. And finally, the football team spends much of the year here despite the few home games.

It is unclear when the reports will be made public, as they may become part of the county's lawsuit against Seahawks owner Ken Behring, who is trying to move the franchise to Southern California.

But Conway and other economists warn that it would be incorrect to look at the gross revenues from sports franchises when deciding whether to build new stadiums.

The most famous study, by Robert Baada, of Lake Forest College in Illinois, maintains that stadiums contribute little value to an area.

Conway disagrees but says that much of the value is intangible.

He noted that professional sports contribute to the "quality of life" and may make an area more entertaining for residents and more attractive for businesses.

"You don't build a stadium to create jobs," Conway said, "but it provides a lot of enjoyment we otherwise wouldn't have."

In addition to bolstering the county's legal battle, the Conway study also may be used next year to lobby the Legislature for money to renovate the Kingdome.