Development

Patriots' woes could spell trouble for the Sox

by Laura A. Siegel

The New England Patriots announced Tuesday that their new stadium in Foxborough will run 30 percent over budget. That's an illustration of what's likely to happen if the Red Sox get their way with a new Fenway, says Peter Catalano of the Fenway Action Coalition: "It's a premonition of what we could expect the magnitude of cost overruns to be at the new Red Sox stadium."

The cost estimate for the Sox stadium has already risen from $550 million to $640 million in the past year. That may be just the beginning. Catalano says the estimate doesn't factor in rising costs for land, construction materials, and labor. It doesn't count the high cost of dealing with a water table right below the surface of the proposed new park; litigation if the team tries to seize land from people who don't want to sell; future redesigns; or rising interest rates. Red Sox spokesperson Kathryn St. John, however, says the estimate hasn't changed and that cost "escalators and calculations" are already built into the figures.

"We are working hard to get the project approved this year because we do want to avoid the kind of delays the Patriots faced. Delays are what raised their cost," she says. "These estimate are based on beginning construction in 2001. We're hopeful that we can come close to that timetable."