They’re “celebrating” the fifth anniversary of Safeco Field in Seattle. The P-I produced a business-focused package on how attendance and sales are down after the shine of the new park has worn off and team starts losing.

• M’s not the only ones losing: Businesses near stadium, which count on big summer sales, have seen a drop-off
  
• Safeco lures fans, but not much else: Sodo area does have a few new retailers — and some high hopes — Safeco Field promised to spark a building boom in the nearby neighborhood. But five years to the day since the stadium opened, the economy, transportation concerns and high vacancy rates today have discouraged property owners from building there
  
• Safeco celebrates fifth anniversary: Stadium a cash cow for Mariners, still a work in progress — And there’s the real point. — Safeco Field has helped wipe away years of red ink for the ownership group. “The fact is, the place works,” said judge Terrence Carroll, a member of the Public Facilities District that oversees the stadium. “It performs and meets the expectations that we all hoped for. There was a big public investment, which I keep reminding the Mariners of, but I think the return has been very good on it so far.”

The Times had just a column that I saw, Let’s keep our eyes on the ball :

We had even started to forget that we paid $372 million of the ballpark’s $517 million tab, while the Mariners kicked in just $45 million and paid $100 million in cost overruns. Lose enough for long enough, though, and it all comes rushing back.

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