Scott stole my post!! I was about to post about this very same subject. The Guv's stadium bonding scheme is gaining unstoppable momentum and will pass shortly. We could have a stadium finance bill in place by Opening Day.
I agree with Scott and Walt that the sales tax on food and drink and hotels is a stupid idea. (to see a great analysis of why it is so wrongheaded find Councilmember Goodman's analysis of a couple of weeks ago, it was excellent). I think that personal seat licenses, stadium naming rights, and a lucrative concessions deal to the Twins can pay for a lot of this. A small ticket surchage would also be quite palatable. A parking surcharge could also be a nice revenue generator. A very small (e.g. one-tenth of one percent)county-wide sales tax could also generate a lot of dollars and spread the pain to the more affluent parts of the County -- it's probably a political non-starter, however. Maybe if the a percentage of the sales tax generated could also go to housing and the arts may make it easier to pass, I have no idea what kind of $$$ this would generate. I'll be interested to hear other ideas as well. Dean E. Carlson Ward 10, East Harriet ScottP writes: > Good morning list! > > Like many folks on the list, I am intrigued by the leveraged bonding Twins > stadium plan that's moving through the legislature this session. I don't > want to focus on the merits of the plan but rather let's assume that it > passes. The state issues bonds with the Twins non-refundable gift and a > ballpark is approved somewhere in the state. If it passes then there will > be a competition to host the ballpark site between various municipalities > (Mpls, St. Paul, Bloomington, BP etc...). Let's assume we want the ballpark > if it is built and we don't want a year round downtown food and beverage tax > (something I am really against). I'd love to hear some creative funding > ideas to attract the ballpark to our fair city. > > With the state doing the bonding I think there are some real opportunities > to put together something that is attractive to the Twins but more > importantly attractive to the residents of Minneapolis. Bear in mind we > have millions of square feet of commercial space being built and becoming > vacant and I think the Twins staying in Minneapolis would be a great sell to > businesses looking to relocate or expand. I have heard from others that we > have not done as well as we have needed to in growing living wage jobs in > the city and I think that attracting those employers to Minneapolis is very > important. (yes I know stadium jobs are not living wage jobs, we need to > think beyond the physical stadium itself) > > If you don't want the ballpark, fine, delete this post and move on to the > next. If you're against the stadium being built at all, same goes. I have > many reservations about the stadium and especially the viability of Major > League Baseball long term. The fact is that it's looking like this may very > well pass so I think it's important to look at how that may affect us here > in Minneapolis. I've got my own ideas but they're really in the germination > stage so I will participate in my own exercise in the near future but not > right now. > > Have a great day! > > Scott Persons > Lyndale Neighborhood (not subject to redistricting) > Ward 8 (subject to redistricting) > SD 61B (recently redistricted) > > _______________________________________ > Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy > Post messages to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest option, and more: > http://e-democracy.org/mpls _______________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest option, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
