J.C. Bradbury
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jcbradbury.com
J.C. Bradbury
@jcbradbury.com
1.6K followers 210 following 2.1K posts
Economist, Georgian, Gadfly
Stadium Subsidies, Film Incentives, Local Economic Development, Sports Economics
Tariffs bad. Vaccines good.
*If I block you, you deserved it.*
jcbradbury.com
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jcbradbury.com
I like this description: "This workaround often involves bonds that aren’t really real, leases that don’t act like typical leases and a government body holding title to a project that they often don’t really own." www.ajc.com/news/rivian-...
Rivian 'bonds' at the center of their Georgia tax breaks caused some confusion
When state and local governments in Georgia woo businesses with property tax breaks, it often takes a bit of financial and legal engineering to make it happen.
www.ajc.com
November 10, 2025 at 4:13 PM
jcbradbury.com
"Critics say" [sigh]. I also got a laugh about the colleague who casually drops teaching at Yale. I've had a few colleagues like that.
November 7, 2025 at 9:29 PM
jcbradbury.com
November 7, 2025 at 8:58 PM
jcbradbury.com
There's also nothing unique about this particular project to think it might somehow buck the trend of failure (if you say external downtown development, you're an ignorant fool). We deserve better local policy influencers who don't go dewy-eyed for subsidized club seats.
November 7, 2025 at 3:03 PM
jcbradbury.com
Raleigh is one of my favorite cities. I have several good friends who live there, so I visit there every now and then.
November 7, 2025 at 12:16 AM
jcbradbury.com
Wait, what? I hadn't heard this yet. Wow, that does seem like it should be a bigger story. Thanks for mentioning it.
November 6, 2025 at 4:58 PM
jcbradbury.com
Oh
The Braves reported an adjusted OIBDA {operating income before depreciation and amortization) of $67 million, an increase of more than 113% from the third quarter of 2024. Baseball adjusted OIBDA was $50 million, up 105%. The profitability was driven by increased revenue and, in part, decreased baseball operating costs. Braves CFO Jill Robinson said that was "primarily due to lower-thanexpected major league player salaries." The payroll certainly was lower than the team's fans expected after president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos said it would increase from 2024 to 2025.
November 6, 2025 at 4:19 PM
jcbradbury.com
McGuirk better do something, bc attendance dropped again last year as the novelty effect of Truist is wearing off, the team isn't good, and the farm is fallow. The organization is certainly not on an endless "glide slope upwards," as he once described it. www.ajc.com/sports/atlan...
How the Braves built a well-oiled machine that could be here to stay
To Braves chairman Terry McGuirk, the organization’s ascension to its current success began in 2012, with a literal and figurative look around Turner Field, then a realization about what the future mi...
www.ajc.com
November 6, 2025 at 4:08 PM
jcbradbury.com
McGuirk said the same thing three years ago, as the Atlanta Braves were being outbid for Freddie Freeman, Dansby Swanson, and Max Fried.

2022/ 2025
Locking up the core As the Braves raked in more money from Truist Park and The Battery, they began to flex their muscles. From 2012-21, McGuirk always said the organization’s goal was to have a top-10 payroll in baseball. This season, the Braves achieved that: They rank eighth with a $188 million payroll, according to FanGraphs. Their next goal? Have a top-five payroll, McGuirk said, all but assuring that the team will get there. "I think I've stated in the past that our goals are to be a top-five salary team," McGuirk said. "We are currently top-10 (and) haven't been out of that in quite some time, out of that range. I think aiming for the top five is a place that I want to get to. I think we are capable of doing that. "This is a very fluid decision-making concept .... I think you will see us quite active in the free-agent market and the trade market. We are a win-now team. We want to fill in the places where we might have a player that needs replacing."
November 6, 2025 at 4:08 PM
jcbradbury.com
True. The economics on this issue are like physics, the same everywhere.
November 6, 2025 at 2:23 AM
jcbradbury.com
Great photo. I love ballpark pictures, and I include a few images of several venues.
November 6, 2025 at 2:11 AM