Special thanks to OUR KICK-ASS BLOG COMMUNITY of insiders. Here's a look at how local government really works to keep bad news out of the headlines. BREAKING!!! 12TH & OAK ANNOUNCE AUDIT OF VISIT KC IN THE AFTERMATH OF THEIR REPORT ON THE DOWNTOWN HOTEL ROOM GLUT!!! As you know a decent chunk of revenue for mental health care is diverted to TIF, LCRA, Port KC, PIEA, etc etc. Tax abatement watchdogs are concerned about this news after THE AUDIT ANNOUCMENT was just handed down. Here's the word . . .
Visit KC released a credible study on downtown hotel occupancy. It confirmed what most of us suspected. KC's Tax Gimmick Extravaganza created more hotel rooms than we really need. Wisely, Visit KC suggested we take a break from the incentive-fueled hotel construction until demand catches up. Their mistake was going public with information unflattering to City Hall bureaucrats and the symbiotic developer class. These groups rely heavily on TIF subsidies and other tax incentive goodies. Then the story took off. It spoke to KC denizens exasperated by City Hall's luxury spending spree and border war lunacy. The high vacancy rate in downtown hotels got covered widely by the MSM and dead tree media. But now the other shoe may be dropping. Just days after the report, City Hall announces an audit of Visit KC. The audit asks "are Visit KC's performance and financial data useful to the City?" Apparently not when it calls massive tax incentives in to question. Is the audit in retaliation for Visit KC's suggesting we slow down on heavily incentivized hotels? You decide. ################# Developing . . .
