And so it goes
Sometimes things are not what they appear. We have all heard this. I suspect that everyone reading this blog has experienced this. So here goes.
Sometimes things are not what they appear. We have all heard this. I suspect that everyone reading this blog has experienced this. So here goes.
The Paducah Sun
Editorial of August 20th, 2013, is a case in point, and I thought I
might fill in a bit. The Sun was correct in its assertion that
Infiniti Media Group did make every payment, was given a grace period, and,
alas, did not hire some 100 employees as promised.
Could the City have demanded the agreement be honored as to
employment or throw Infinity into the street?
Of course, we could. And with
righteous indignation, we could have declared our right to do so. We might have looked demonstrative in our
action. Sometimes, however, no action is
the best action. I think the taxpayers
were well served by this “no action.”
How so? As the paper
said, “They made their payments of nearly $34,000 per month.” The payment was used to pay on the bonds that
built the building, so we as taxpayers didn’t have to. The building owner takes no equity with him
as he leaves.
Since there has been no company waiting in the wings, so to
speak, to take over the Infinity building, is there anything wrong with
allowing Infiniti to stay there and make their payments of $34,000 a
month? Not really, especially if, as the Sun said the city acknowledges that
“companies should not be able to continue benefiting from incentives based on
nothing more than promises repeated indefinitely.” The key word here is “indefinitely.”
And, oh by the way, this “no action” was in place long
before I arrived on the scene.
Sometimes things are not exactly as they appear. And sometimes no action is the best action.
And so it goes.
