Stadiums Don’t Create Jobs
Posted by Jeff Pruitt - 7/25/08 @ 12:24 am - Filed Under Local Politics
Dan Turkette of Fort Wayne News has a post up highlighting a Wall Street Journal story regarding the woeful job creation performance of newly constructed stadiums. It’s a must read for all those that think Harrison Square is going to be some kind of panacea for Fort Wayne’s economic future…
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16 Responses to “Stadiums Don’t Create Jobs”
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The majority of jobs created by Harrison Square will, most likely, be in Law Enforcement.
We will need a lot of officers to handle the crime and traffic jams that will invade downtown. Each floor of the parking garage will need at least two officers to handle the car break-ins and strongarm robberies.
Maybe the police department will assign the “square” a seperate zone so we can read the crime reports for that area each week?
Colgate, when I see misinformed comments like this, it makes me feel fairly certain that you are doing your best to keep us in the running for America’s dumbest city.
http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f312/Tonito44/ThatsRacist.gif
I’d “like” to think that HS will open up a new venue for crime and give these perps somewhere ELSE to play other than our neighborhoods…
That’s what I’d LIKE to think.
But given the city’s “stellar” track record of MOVING crime around the city (sarcastically, he mused) over the last decade, it’s not going to happen.
Still, all those MINIMUM WAGE jobs will pay SO MUCH MORE ($.70 an hour with another raise in the spring).
I mean WHO can beat THAT, hmm?
;)
B.G.
Colgate isn’t so far off. Have you watched what goes on near the stadium all day long with 8 a.m. line for the liquor store near there and then back in line for refils after the $.99 munchie fest for lunch?
Somehow, someway, miraculously, we just made it through more than a week of Three Rivers Festival events with thousands upon thousands upon thousands of people downtown without any fear mongering stories about crime or the streets of downtown Fort Wayne collapsing in on themselves because of the increased traffic.
If there’s one place people should be afraid of it’s the Midway at the Coliseum parking lot, not downtown.
Seems like we had this same conversation a few years ago about a downtown arena. Not only would any permanent job’s “created” have beeen minimum wage, they would merely have been shifted from the Coliseum.
The major beneficiaries from these kinds of projects are the building contractors. That’s not necessarily a bad thing but keeping them in business through privately funded projects is preferable.
Scott,
I think if you check all the trouble that has taken place at the Coliseum has been outside the Midway area which is patrolled by police.
I also think if you check that after the fireworks Sunday downtown the police had their problems with all kinds of crap spilling out on to Clinton Street.
What is interesting is the FWPD that will be working the baseball games will be paid for by tax dollars. I have not heard if these will be on duty officers who may well be drawn from other areas of Fort Wayne or being paid overtime. Not a real bargin when you think about it!!!!!
For the first time in recent memory, there were some teenagers fighting on the last night of TRF (”all kinds of crap” as JQ puts it). This type of thing could happen at any college football game, high school football game etc etc. To act as if this is a “downtown” problem and that people should be fearful going to Harrison Square for a baseball game is just downright ignorant.
I will tell you this though, the Harrison Square bashing never gets old. Keep it going.
Sam,
My point was that the statement Scott made was in error.
While I am also sure the public would like to know that what happened after the fireworks occurs after HIGHSCHOOL FOOTBALL games. I guess I have not been to a highschool football game in years but I never believed such conduct that required police to use tear gas was part of the FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS.
JQ,
Of course any extra police presence (or any other public service) needed above and beyond what’s down there now will not be paid for by the TIF district.
This is a fundamental problem I have with TIFs. They typically require higher-than-average services but pay absolutely no taxes for them…
Jeff,
Just remember that since the property tax levels where cut we must have extra money in our pockets. Hence, the city knows we do not mind picking up the bills for one private sector business to make a buck. This is America for gosh sakes.
JQ, Teenagers completely out of hand.. pepper sprayed by cops. This happenned on the last night of TRF and its the first time something like this has happenned in decades at TRF. If you dont think something like this could possibly happen at one of the thousands of high school football games occuring over the same period, well then, your just naive or uninformed.
Sam, I know what you are saying and for the most part you are right on. I think one would need to go back to the 80’s or early 90’s for any amount of troube outside of dealing with drunks.
Also the Midway at the Coliseum does not have shootings and so forth every year.
If you want to include every football game played in the US then I would agree with you. In Fort Wayne, Allen County and Northeast Indiana large fights are rare over being common place.
Mr. Green:
My “misinformation” is only baised on a number of years of personal observation. It appears you have never been in the downtown area to hear the gun shots that begin just after dark.
But, why don’t you find a police officer that works the 4p-12midnight and midnight to 8A shifts. Ask them what gos on! Please don’t take my word for it. I hope the project goes well and doesn’t put us at the top of your ‘dumbest city’ list.
Mr. Colgate.
First of all, Mr. Green was one of the suspects in the Clue Game. Mr. Green Jeans was Captain Kangaroos faithful side kick. Now that we have that out of the way, I have spent a lot of time downtown after dark and I have yet to hear my first gun shot. Are you kidding me? talk about fear mongering!