U of M Athletic Director Maturi announced that the first outdoor concert in TCF Stadium will be performed by U2 next June. News reports on TV last night said that first dibs for tickets will be for season ticket holders, students and alumni, with few or no tickets remaining for the general public.
Am I sensing a trend here?
Taxpayers are sent the bill for a football stadium where they cannot attend music events or sporting events unless the insiders refuse them first. Yes, there was a (tax deductible) fundraising drive, but the general taxpayers, most of whom will never see the inside of TCF, paid $140 million. We can bitch all we want about professional sports, but anybody with a green dollar can buy a ticket and attend their events.
Taxpayers pay for an ice arena hosting hockey games that they cannot attend unless the insiders aren't interested in them, and then some tickets may be released to the public. The last time I tried to buy tickets to a Gopher hockey game, the general message on the school web site was "don't bother asking".
Taxpayers are billed for numerous on campus facilities, including professional class fitness centers and other ameneties, that they are not allowed to use under any conditions.
Question: Are the facilities in our Big Ten public universities being constructed as a service to the residents and taxpayers of the state, or are they an example of the Elites using their political clout to force taxpayers to finance playgrounds for themselves and their children, with the great unwashed majority unwelcome in them?