So an enormously wealthy investment/banking corporation wants to erect a new building downtown and wants taxpayers to pitch in some money. Sound familiar? It ought to.
But this time it's in Baltimore, where Legg Mason is building a fancy new HQ. But here's the twist: The Baltimore Sun is actually coming out against public money for the project:
When such successful developers return again and again to the public trough, it encourages others to do the same. ...
The Baltimore Development Corp. is reviewing a proposal for "financial assistance" from the developers of the Legg project; no one is sharing the specifics, but the BDC board should consider this:
Financial aid from the city should be reserved for projects most developers would shy away from. It should be used to encourage investment in struggling neighborhoods and to provide leverage for other projects or to complete public improvements.
It shouldn't be expected, nor should it be conveyed, simply because it's been done before. Those days should be over.
Interesting. I am not really sure why this project is all that different from the myriad others the paper's editors supported over the years. Either way, perhaps the worm has turned. Which could be a good thing. Although I doubt it.
Well, well, well. There are victories.
Some blog should keep a record of them.
I think that the TIF at Deer Creek Crossing went poof recently. Hardly a notice. That was another win, more than just an editorial in our favor. It was a marketplace statement, despite what the politicians wanted to give away.
Posted by: Mark Rauterkus | February 25, 2007 at 05:07 PM
Several years ago, the Mt. Lebanon School District said no to a TIF for the Galleria renovation. The project went on anyway, though on a somewhat lesser scale.
Posted by: Jonathan Potts | February 26, 2007 at 04:30 AM
The biggest win, from my point of view -- and I'd love to hear of others -- was when the Pgh Public School Board said "NO" to the tax break for the COKE OVEN in Hazelwood. The group, GASP, did a WONDERFUL job in pointing out all the health worries and downside to the plant being put back into operation. Engineers and lots of charts and education came from them.
Since then, the school board has had a couple of voices against the TIFs, but they generally seem to pass, sadly.
Posted by: Mark Rauterkus | February 26, 2007 at 03:09 PM