If Tacoma loses Russell (Part V)
February 29th, 2008 by Republican By DefaultGregoire contributes lottery proceeds to ‘Save the Russell’ fund
Pardon my cynicism, but it’s an election year.
Don’t get me wrong, I really want Russell to stay in Tacoma provided it’s good for them and good for us. They’ll take care of themselves. We, on the other hand, have to watch what’s going on so that we don’t get sold down the river by a bunch of bureaucrats and politicians.
If we have to sweeten the deal to keep them here then we should, as long as it’s still to our benefit to have them here when the cost of keeping them here is factored in. I’ll be really ticked off if we spend millions to keep them here then all we hear about from then on is how much benefit they give the city annually. I want to know that the cost of keeping them here is weighed against the financial benefit we get from their presence in downtown Tacoma.
If you’ve read my posts on the subject (see links below) you’ll know that I don’t believe that the full $77 million in economic benefits that we get from Russell will disappear if they should leave. So when the bureaucrats and politicians are figuring out how much to sweeten the deal before their final offer they need to consider the actual impact of them leaving, not an overblown figure that doesn’t represent the impact of Russell moving only their offices from downtown.
I’m also not willing to pay for a few politicians to cover their behinds for the way they’ve treated Russell and many other businesses in downtown Tacoma. Many of them remember what happened to Gary Locke when Boeing left. He didn’t even bother to run for reelection it was so bad.
I’m sure there are city council members who are shaking in their boots at the prospect of losing their political careers because Russell left Tacoma on their watch. And I have to be honest, I’m not willing to pay one thin dime to keep anyone in office. Part of me wants to say, “let the chickens come home to roost,” but that would affect all of us, not just the incompetent politicians who treated Russell and others like dirt.
Setting aside my beef with the 2004 election and the validity of Gregoire’s elected status, it was a very close race in 2004. The closest ever if I’m not mistaken. Now her opponent is running against her for a rematch. Again with my cynicism, but that brings her motives for everything she does into question.
And I have to ask, since Russell has already announced that they’re staying in the Puget Sound region, why would Gregoire care where they are. You would think she’d be interested in seeing the most equitable solution for the state, rather than just one city. Instead she takes sides. I guess she saw how close Pierce County was in the last election and she knows she has King County sewn up. We’re a swing district.
And as I’m so easily confused, wasn’t the whole lottery system sold as a way to generate revenue for education? Was that just a political promise that no one intended to keep? I guess that would explain why the money is now being spent on business and political interests rather than on the children in our state. In case you’re interested in the political double-speak on the issue, here’s a link (Washington’s Lottery - A History of Legislation).
Link to Business Examiner Daily post is here.
One more question. In the article this statement is made:
[Economic Development Board for Tacoma-Pierce County President Bruce] Kendall has remained tight lipped on what the proposal might include but did say that the detailed report to Russell might involve bubble wrap and packing tape. [emphasis added]
I understand that negotiations need to be kept confidential so as not to tip off the competition. But I don’t trust these people. I want to know every detail of this deal. I don’t care if I need to rent a truck to pick up a copy of it to read. This isn’t a private deal, it’s public funds being used as corporate welfare. It had better be out in the open or you won’t need to read my blog to know what I think. Just open a window (the glass kind) and you’ll hear me.
In this series:
If Tacoma loses Russell (Part I)
If Tacoma loses Russell (Part II)
If Tacoma loses Russell (Part III)
If Tacoma loses Russell (Part IV)
If Tacoma loses Russell (Part V)
If Tacoma loses Russell (Part VI)
If Tacoma loses Russell (Part VII)
