IS IT TRUE? July 22, 2011 Part 2: Please knock off the Xenophobic Bull and Vet the Proposals on their Merit

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Whatever happened to a USA that accepted foreigners yearning to be free

IS IT TRUE? July 22, 2011 Part 2

IS IT TRUE that it has been reported that the first publication of the RFP for the new downtown hotel was published in the Evansville Courier on July 4, 2011?…that the contract with Woodruff Hospitality LLC and the authorization to issue a new RFP were voted on and unanimously approved by the Evansville Redevelopment Commission in their July 5, 2011 meeting?…that there must have been some presumption of what the vote was going to be for the RFP to have been published before the authorization to do so was granted?…that the RFP could have and should have been held until the ERC authorized it and rescinded the Woodruff Hospitality LLC contract?…that we hope that the acceptance of any bids is not legally compromised by this rush to publish?

IS IT TRUE that there is a poll in today’s Courier and Press that asks the question Do you think foreign investors should be involved in the financing of the proposed Downtown hotel?…that this question alone in the way it is posed is prejudicial and implies that in some way that money borrowed from foreign nationals should be rejected?…that the answer “NO” is gathering 64% of the votes?…that the government of the United States of America borrows money from foreign sources on a regular basis to fund the operation of our country?…that anyone or any entity that rejects the premise that foreign money should not be borrowed for domestic projects is completely out of touch with the reality of today?…that all federal, state, and local government employees get at least a part of their paychecks because foreign money was borrowed to keep those paychecks from being returned for insufficient funds?…that if foreign money could not be borrowed this country would be in dire straits very quickly?…that the very nature of the question invites outsider hating small minds and that this is not an attribute that Evansville should be identified with?

IS IT TRUE that if we do not wish to see private businesses borrow foreign dollars to invest in and around Evansville, Indiana that there are several companies that we need to just close today?…that GE Plastics sold their plant in Mount Vernon to SABIC?…that the source of these funds was and is substantially from Saudi Arabia?…that Toyota that employs nearly 5,000 people directly and by some estimates another 5,000 in supplier businesses is a Japanese company?…that the original investment was foreign money?…that Governor Daniels, Mayor Weinzapfel, Greg Wathen, and a host of other economic development professionals regularly travel overseas in hopes of enticing “foreign money” to come to Evansville to help in the “job creation” process?

IS IT TRUE that the management of the City County Observer has been approached to expand into a daily print newspaper?…that some of the investment dollars being considered are foreign money?

IS IT TRUE that rejecting a funding source because it is offshore is not only un-American it is self limiting and an indicator of prejudice?…that we are better than this Evansville?…that this is not the time to question where a private developers loan is coming from?…that this is precisely the time to do what can be done to find a hotel developer with a secure funding source by any legal means they see fit?…that fanning the fires of xenophobia is no way to move Evansville toward a prosperous future?…that if we are relying on local financing to carry our pail of water, we will be thirsty without any hotel for many years?

Xenophobia: is defined as the “hatred or fear of foreigners or strangers or of their politics or culture”. Xenophobia can manifest itself in many ways involving the relations and perceptions of an ingroup towards an outgroup, including a fear of losing identity, suspicion of its activities, aggression, and desire to eliminate its presence to secure a presumed purity.

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16 COMMENTS

  2. There is more than just xenophobic bull involved here. This funding program calls for the granting of a certain number of visas to foreign investors per year, and if those numbers are not met the financing can be pulled.

    There is also a requirement that for each $1. Million of loan, there must be 14 NEW jobs created.

  3. The Courier is clueless. Our visitor center, is a pagoda.

    The fact of the matter, I fear, is that any talk of vetting is going to be a total waste of time and money.

    I believe, regardless, the decision will be made (or justified) by any means necessary to avoid the fact that the included “letters”, their signers, and their past patronage might have already sealed the deal?

    True vetting, can only be relied upon in a rational (political) environment. Reasoned policital environments, can only exist where populations actually comprehend what is happening to them.

    In some respects, couldn’t it be said that there are more weighty political statements in these bids (or lack thereof) than financial nitty gritty?

    To me, it takes 10 minutes to realize looking at these bids, that the union brotherhoods in this area, have laid down the gauntlet.

    Nothing wrong with it, it is what it is.

    So when we read the CCO talking a mean game of vetting. Let’s not kid ourselves. This kind of a bid, is nothing like comparing an Iphone to an EVO.

    Remember, Weinzapfel “vetted” out SMG for the lackluster water pressure in the drinking fountains.

    Councilman At-Large Adams, recently told us we should demand more “clarity” with ERC, and should have less “hoops” to jump through. (without telling us what hoop we need to jump through to cause HIM to act.) He told us that ERC minutes are spun for our consumption! He told us that ERC has no real restrictions! (https://city-countyobserver.com/2011/07/20/evansville-redevelopment-commission-restricts-access-to-public-information/)

    Yet, I read comments (of educated poeple) of applause for bringing up the passwords?

    I think the vetting readers need to do. Is realize that what Adams and McGinn said in response to the password issue are nowhere near equal.

    When this population can vet those statements… who knows?

  5. It may be SOP for the federal government to borrow money from foreign governments to operate, but given the choice I think most Americans would say thanks but no thanks to doing business that way. it’s part of the reason we have many of the problems today with our economy, call me whatever you like but personally I believe if you don’t have the money to buy something you wait till you do….granted that’s not always possible with big ticket items (homes & hotels I guess). The problem I see is that if local financing isn’t available and regional financing isn’t available then it would appear that the risk is too high and the ROI too low, so why does anyone still think it’s such a great idea to build the hotel? if it was such a money making proposition I would think ONB would be jumping at the chance to loan the money…they are not and you can bet they have properly vetted the situation to see if it is a good investment, it isn’t, so the only way to get it built is the two offers we have on the table and to me neither is ideal from a tax payers standpoint.

    The posing questions is….what do we do? it’s a sad state of affairs that has brought us to this point where we have to have a hotel, it’s going to cost the tax base a huge some of money and we are not going to get the best value for our tax dollars, it will never be worth what it costs to build, the hotel will never be able to charge the amount needed to turn a profit and give the investors a reasonable ROI, but yet we have a smiling mayor that laughs and giggles at every photo op and would give the impression that he either doesn’t care, has no shame, or really does think he is smarter then everyone around him….is he really that stupid? 🙁

  8. The question upper-most in my mind about the financing for the Hyatt Place project are this:

    Don’t get me wrong about this, I have no problem with foreign investment on this project.

    What has me stumped is why the lack of interest by domestic financiers? Is Evansville insulated from the rest of the national investment market? If local investors want to control the investment market here, can they actually accomplish that, barring a foreign investment program like EB-5?

    Does the reluctance spring from the fact that this is a “public/private” project? If it were strictly a private project, would financing be more, or less, of a problem to attain?

    Can American businessmen and financing institutions do anything nowadays without assistance from the taxpayers?

    __

    • It is all a continuation of the saga that I have written extensively about regarding the fact that there is NO VENTURE CAPITAL or ANGEL INVESTMENT in this town.

      This deal could and should be financed locally. It will not be. The local banking community will not touch this deal because the numbers do not conform to their standards. There is no local investment group for any developer to go to.

      I once again pose this question. If Evansville will not invest in Evansville then why on earth would someone else come here to invest in this city? $30 Million is peanuts when compared to the wealth of this city. Why is it that the answer to the economic malaise is always to seek an outsider to invest in a place that will not invest in itself.

      Local private money should be funding this project. There are two proposals. One seeks funding overseas and the other seeks it from a California hard money lender. Once again we shall see the profits of local ventures sent elsewhere.

      At least it looks like we may have a chance to get a hotel.

      • At least Evansville and the surrounding counties got the time zone issue right. Maybe there is still hope for the funding issues. I agree with Joe, because 10 years from now, no one except the ‘nay-sayers’ will be discussing (in a negative way) who put up the money to build the 3-star hotel in downtown Evansville.

  9. The continuing Saga that is Evansville is such an unpleasent tale to tell,–or Sell. A life-long resident, my goal is to shake the dust of this city off my shoes in the near future, and only return to be buried along side family. There will be no looking back, my optimism has been exhausted in regards to Evansville’s Future, as Ethics, Integerity ,Honesty, Morality, are DIRTY WORDS to those on the Leadership rolls of this Community.

    • I have already been there and done that. The grass is not really that green ‘over there’.

      • I hear you fox3. My fustration level around here hits it’s head on the ceiling sometimes, leading to rambling on my part.

  10. Print edition of the CCO ? Contrary to the trend in the industry, but give it a pilot project to see if it works, I would definitely be willing to pay. Just a thought: I used to really like the Evansville Press (afternoon newspaper). I also like the CCO Evening Edition which appears periodically. Consider having a print edition late afternoon which brings up-to-date status at the end of the 9-4 non-internet news cycle. Let’s face it, most political news happens from 9-4. Most stories after that are just commenting on or interpreting what has happened earlier in the day. Finally, I post on both the CCO and the C&P. I am just amazed at the stories the CCO gets. Either the C&P is just lazy or lacks the courage to publish the content CCO does. Regardless, ” if you build it, I bet the readers will come and subscribe”.

    • I forgot to comment on the color blindness of investment dollars. If someone has an interest in your project and is willing to put their money where their mouth is, how could a businessman possibly discriminate ? That sort of thinking is “foreign” to me ! Honestly, the notion that Kish’s comments were trying to portray foreign investment as bad did not occur to me . . . certainly glad that Kish is a Native American.

  11. Maybe a bit off topic, but I came here in 1985 for a six month gig and never left.
    The weather,the river,and mainly,the people just suited me.
    I’ve talked with many folks and found that it’s not uncommon.

    The point being,that I sense from other opinions here something of the jist of this :

    Outside money would be a good thing but not too much of it.
    We’d kind of like to improve things a bit but,man,not so that things really change in that things really change.

    Let’s not screw up this sweet little pocket of goodness.

    The thing that scares me is I agree with it.

    Like I don’t want the area to be “discovered”and consequently lose itself.
    I found this place,go find your own place.
    That kinda thinking.

    I don’t know.

    I do like this website though.I say kudos to all involved.

Comments are closed.