Bengals bite back

Payback, especially in politics, can be a bitch.

That’s what incumbent Republican Commissioner Phil Heimlich found out last night when he was ousted by Commissioner-elect David Pepper.

Heimlich was part of the Hamilton County push for the government to sue the Cincinnati Bengals, hoping to collect tens of millions of dollars after a deficit was projected for the sales tax fund that pays the mortgage on Paul Brown Stadium.

The team sued the Bengals and the National Football League, claiming they used their monopoly power to win a stadium lease that was far more favorable to the team than to taxpayers footing the bill.

Hamilton County voters passed a 1996 half-cent sales tax to pay for stadiums for the Bengals and Cincinnati Reds.

That sales tax fund is projected to have a deficit of at least $191 million when the stadium mortgages come due more than 20 years from now.

The Bengals say they are blameless because the approximately $450 million cost cited by county officials for the cost of Paul Brown Stadium includes about $100 million to buy land and do public improvements for The Banks -- a $600 million commercial, residential and retail neighborhood planned to sit between the two stadiums that itself is very controversial.

After Hamilton County sued the team in federal court, the team won. Negotiations began for a settlement but then two of the three Hamilton County commissioners – Heimlich and Todd Portune – voted to appeal the case. It still is pending.

At least five Bengals front office employees – and the team’s lawyer -- contributed $32,000 to the Heimlich's opponent:

* Bengals President Mike Brown -- $20,000;
* Bengals Business Development Director Troy Blackburn -- $5,000
* Bengals Vice President, Player Personnel Paul Brown -- $3,000
* Bengals Senior Vice President, Player Personnel Peter Brown -- $3,000
* Bengals Director of Sales and Public Affairs Jeff Berding, also a Cincinnati Council Member -- $250

Bengals attorney Stuart Dornette -- very active in local Republican politics – also gave Pepper, a Democrat, a campaign donation of $1,000 at an Aug. 22 event.

Blackburn also gave $619 his in-kind contributions to the Pepper campaign for that Aug. 22 event -- $21 for invitations and stamps and $598 for food and beverages.

That is in addition to another political payback produced last weekend by two other Republicans, one also employed by the Bengals.

John Dowlin was a Republican Hamilton County commissioner who served with Heimlich for two years – until Heimlich recruited Republican Pat DeWine to beat Dowlin in a primary.

Dowlin’s name was on a full-page Enquirer ad for two days last weekend where a group call “Citizens for Good Government” urged Heimlich’s defeat.

Dowlin admitted he was encouraged to participate in the ad by another former Republican Hamilton County Commissioner – Bob Bedinghaus.

Bedinghaus was the commissioner who pushed for the 1996 sales tax increase to pay for the stadiums.

He also negotiated the lease with the team, a lease Heimlich blasted as “an outrageous giveaway,” that resulted in Bedinghaus being voted out of office.

After his defeat, Bedinghaus took a new job – with the Bengals, as director of development for Paul Brown Stadium.