Grand Rapids Mayor George Heartwell and the City Commission approved by a 6-1 vote a subsidy for Amway-founder Rich DeVos's Marriot hotel project in downtown. Only Commissioner James Jendrasiak opposed the subsidy because DeVos was a billionaire. Perhaps, although the subsidy would still be a bad idea if DeVos were only a millionaire or even broke (which may be closer to the truth).
Heartwell and the commission approved the subsidy in the form of an amendment to the Downtown Development Authority's mandate for payment of certain public works. The amended mandate allows the DDA to pay for an estimated $5 million in changes to public facilities (such as sidewalks etc.) surrounding the site of DeVos's new hotel at the corner of Pearl and Campau. Typically the developer would bear the cost of these changes instead of the taxpayers.
However, it appears that George and the gang thought it more important to save DeVos and his partners (what should for them be) a few bucks by having the taxpayers subsidize a new hotel in an already crowded market for downtown visitors. All is not lost, folks. Their approval of the subsidy is only tentative, and Commissioner Rick Tormala says it needs more study before final approval. Contact the mayor and your commissioners today and tell them to get some commonsense on this issue: No to subsidizing billionaires! Click here for their e-mail addresses and phone numbers.
How wonderful it is for a city that just lost its biggest employer and taxpayer (Steelcase) to use taxpayer money to subsidize its richest "benifactor"!
Amazing to say the least. And I thought Heartwell was somewhat of a progressive mayor...well not to be, me lad, not to be.
Jendrasiak is a light in the darkness of the bowels of City Hall. Support this guy with everything you have, he seems to be all you've got these days.
Oh and kudos to Mr. Jendrasiak for refusing to use Steelcase furniture too. Give Steelcase tens of millions of taxbreaks over the past 25 years and what do they do? A knife in the back of those that fed you.
You knew I was a scorpion when you picked me up lady.....
Posted by: Dan Of Rockford | March 31, 2005 at 08:43 PM
Hello, Dan.
Your mention of the Steelcase closing shows how screwed up are the priorities of City officials. Manufacturing per square foot is the richest tax base an urban area like Grand Rapids has. Yet, instead of encouraging the growth of manufacturing within the city limits, City staffers and commissioners keep punching holes in the tax base by larding downtown with tax-exempt projects while letting the taxpayers slip away.
As for Jendrasiak, he has on occasion shown some gumption, but too often it boils to grandstanding. I'd be more of a fan of his, but his allegiance is to the union, whereas my is to labor (if you get my drift). So I do disagree with Jendrasiak denouncing Steelcase in the absence of a coherent City policy to keep manufacturing in town.
Regards,
Bill
Posted by: The Executive Director | April 01, 2005 at 09:04 AM