Developers have been confounded for a quarter-century in their attempts to build a hotel next to the Mon Incline atop Mt. Washington.
It appears, as the Post-Gazette reports, that the repeated sticking point was that a series of developers could not secure financing. Hmmmm, what does that tell us, class?
Now comes word that yet another developer wants to take a stab at it, proposing a $95 million hotel and conference center. And to that end, a $1 million state redevelopment assistance capital grant has been secured from the commonwealth. That would be taxpayers.
Say what?
Yet again, this pertinent question must be asked: Why should the public be turned into venture capitalist?
Simply put, they should not be.
The P-G also notes a variety of other private projects seeking public handouts:
U.S. Steel, newly the recipient of tariff relief from the federal government, to counter foreign-subsidized steel, is seeking $25 million from the commonwealth for more than $55 million in construction costs at Braddock’s Edgar Thomson Works.
Say what?
Why should the public pay for this private project?
Then there’s the Boston company seeking $10 million in public money to build a luxury hotel in the Cultural District and a grocery store.
Say what?
If this company wants to build a luxury hotel and a grocery store, it should risk its own money.
But wait, it gets worse:
The owner of the Market Square-adjacent PPG Place complex, wants $3 million from taxpayers to help it secure a grocery store for the old 2 PPG Place food court site.
Say what?
For years there was been wailing and teeth-gnashing about downtown Pittsburgh being a grocery store desert. Well, if there’s such a demand for Downtown grocery stores, there should be more than enough profit potential for grocers to risk their own money in pursuit of that profit.
Government as grocer? It has absolutely no business being in the grocery store business. None. Nada. Zip. Zilch.
“It’s the way business is done,” those who belly up to the taxpayer trough, and those who continually offer it, keep saying.
Say what?
Say this, as did correspondent Nick Kyriazi to this scrivener, sharing an email he sent to members of Pittsburgh City Council regarding “tax dollars for entrepreneurs” (and whose sentiment is applicable to any government officials and agencies improperly bestowing public alms on private enterprises):
“We created government to protect us from force and fraud, and to do those things we cannot do as individuals. Helping entrepreneurs is the job of family, friends, banks and venture capitalists, not government.
And that means not taxpayers.
Concomitantly, developers of myriad stripes are quick to trot out the old saw that his or her project cannot be built without public subsidies. But instead of government types rushing to dish up the latest dollop of corporate wealthfare, they should say this:
“If you don’t have the financial wherewithal, your project isn’t worth building. And if you do have the financial wherewithal but simply seek to offload capital costs that you alone should bear, think again. Taxpayers have no business assuming any of your risk.”
Colin McNickle is a senior fellow and media specialist at the Allegheny Institute for Public Policy (cmcnickle@alleghenyinstitute.org).
