OFFICIAL SECRETS: City Hall wants $38 million for economic development. But they dont want to explain.

  • OFFICIAL SECRETS: City Hall wants $38 million for “economic development.” But they don’t want to explain.

Since the vote has been arranged to keep public comments to a minimum, I guess it’s left to me to complain about Mayor Mark Stodola’s tenacity in preserving a fat “economic development” slush fund in the revised city sales tax proposal (worth a half-billion over 10 years) to be voted on Monday night for a possible September special election.

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He’s lowered his sights to a 5/8ths-of-a-cent increase in the current half-cent tax for operations. He wants another 3/8ths of a penny for 10 years for alleged “capital” projects, though many don’t really fit the traditional definition and will not be bonded. That is, the city can spend this money just about any old way it chooses and therein lies the rub. Particularly when it comes to the slush fund. Stodola proposes to preserve a whopping $38 million for these purposes:

* $6 million — “Job recruitment and ED infrastructure.”
* $32 million — “Port expansion and research park.”

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That’s it. No further explanation has been offered and Stodola has been repeatedly asked by me and others for more details.

Who would allocate the money? Would taxpayers be privy to the terms on which the money is extended? Would we be guaranteed clawbacks of money spent for promises not delivered? Will the FOI law apply? Who will recruit for the city and what will they be paid? If the Chamber of Commerce spends any of this money will there be more accountability than now given (virtually none) on the taxpayer subsidy the chamber receives? The port expansion buys what land? Who runs the research park? How much will be spent on each and for what? And on and on it goes. There are dozens of questions and no answers so far except, “trust us.”

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Sorry, no, this city hasn’t earned that level of trust. Fully 20 percent of the capital money is devoted to the slush fund. The $38 million is $7 million more than the city plans to spend on police capital needs. It’s $33 million more than planned on Fire Department needs. $21 million more than planned on park capital needs. $37 million more than planned on neighborhood and community capital needs. Per year, at $3.8 million, it’s more than the city plans to spend annually on the sum of new fire, code enforcement and street repair jobs.

It’s proposed by a city with a lacklustre record on job creation, a pursuit that doesn’t always translate to much trickle-down for Little Rock, not when the workers come from outside the city for low-pay jobs but put demand on our facilities. We’ve been living on this faith too long with little to show for it other than stagnant population and declining sales tax revenues. At least when the money is spent on direct city services, you can see the results. Sometimes, a city with smooth streets, safe neighborhoods, wonderful parks, vigilant code enforcement, good schools and productive youth programs attracts more business than a one-time welfare handout.

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Will the city board send this proposal to voters without more details, more accountability and more transparency? Probably. Will it matter? We’ll see come September.

UPDATE I: The mayor is perhaps reluctant to mention it, but what do you bet this LR Chamber of Commerce study on a research park, depending on heavy public funding, is a template for the plan.

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UPDATE II: This post generated an e-mail response in the form of a fact sheet being distributed by Arkansas Community Organizations. Many good points, the kinds of things you KNOW the chamber of commerce would HATE or gladly trade away in secret negotiations for funneling taxpayer money to corporate subsidies. I encourage you to read on. This is the sort of thing the City Board should adopt as guidelines for spending the $38 million, if it is to be included in the tax vote. But insisting on good jobs and working conditions in change for taxpayer welfare? It’s just not the chamber’s way.

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