Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Independence Taxpayers Take "The Falls" For Underdeveloped Bass Pro Center



Last week- Bass Pro- the Springfield MO-based outdoor sports retailer- bit the proverbial hand that fed them.




Bass Pro won a lawsuit against the City of Independence MO... to the tune of near one-half million dollars.






You see- city leaders made all these pie-in-the-sky promises to Bass Pro to be the anchor of that shopping area known as "The Falls at Crackerneck Creek" that was built in the southwest quadrant of the busy I-70 and I-470/M-291 interchange.


According to the KANSAS CITY BUSINESS JOURNAL- those pie-in-the-sky promises cost Independence taxpayers $3.5-million in bond payments for the underdeveloped shopping area last year- and promises to cost at least that amount this year.


That would be $7.5-million gone (including the Bass Pro legal judgement) from Independence coffers in just two years- JUST for bond payments to ONE city-backed shopping center.


Independence city leaders are floating a sales tax increase this year for "law enforcement.




$7.5-million would have paid for A BUNCH of cops- but that's okay Independence voters/taxpayers.




Like Raytown and their WalMart sweetheart deal- and Kansas City MO with their huge subsidy of the Power and Light district- the new cops you hire with a higher sales tax voters will be scared-into approving will have plenty of pretty places to shop-  drink and eat (one even IN your city)....

1 comment:

Unknown said...

The part that strikes me funny about this is that some people think this is all for a good cause.

Some day that will a golden place to shop they say so it's a good investment.

That sort of thinking explains how idiots get voted into office all the time that do stupid stuff such as pie in the sky offers to rich corporations to begin with.

Hey Independence taxpayers will you play for my vacation this year I really want to take one but would rather invest my money in stocks or some bonds than spend it on something silly like vacation.

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