In a recent issue of Economic Development Quarterly, Johnson et al. took issue with the contention that there is a strong scholarly consensus that professional sports facilities are not advisable public investments. Johnson et al. argued that opinion surveys of economists may be flawed, research reaches somewhat ambiguous conclusions, and that existing reviews of academic literature do not provide a balanced assessment of the evidence. Thus, Johnson et al. concluded that a judicious policy approach requires weighing the costs and benefits of individual stadium projects. This reply evaluates these claims and demonstrates that they do not have merit; therefore, it is accurate to describe the academic consensus as generally opposed to public underwriting of professional sports venues.
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