IS IT TRUE that the CCO is sad to report that the Karges Furniture Company that began operations in Evansville in 1886 has laid off nearly the entire staff leaving only a skeleton crew to fill the final orders before ceasing operations?…Evansville has very few companies that are the world leader in their field and even though many local people could not afford it, Karges has supplied dignitaries, sheiks, and aficionados with high end hand-made furniture that was designed and made in Evansville for over a century?…in a day when local governments are in the business of handing out cash incentives to schemes and call centers it seems as though nothing could be done to save this city treasure of a legacy business?…we shall surely miss this business and wish the workers Godspeed in finding new employment?
IS IT TRUE that while there is sad news on West Maryland Street there are some reliable MOLES that tell the City County Observer that there are some details emerging from Mayor Winnecke’s choice on which developer should be the recipient of the Largesse of the City of Evansville when it comes to getting some corporate welfare?…that the recommendation will be that a 270 room hotel with a price tag of between $27 Million and $32 Million will be made by Mayor Winnecke?…the package will also include a STORAGE Building at a cost of $6 Million that should have been included in the Ford Center budget and has no business in the hotel or the Centre’s cost?…there shall also be two walk bridges that will cost in the neighborhood of $3.5 Million each included?…a parking tower with a price tag of $5 Million is also on the Valentine’s Day wish list?…street improvements in the range of $2 Million to $4 Million will be required to make all of these things work well together along with a maximum tax abatement of 10 years to the chosen developer?…the tab to the public to make this investment attractive to the chosen private developer is rumored to be in excess of $40 Million?…that is just about the exact price that former Mayor Weinzapfel announced in 2008 would be invested in a 4-Star hotel without public assistance if only the City of Evansville will build an arena?
IS IT TRUE that is not all that is being sought?…that whatever the equity investment is being proposed by the chosen developer that the taxpayers of Evansville are also going to be asked to grant a permanent subsidy that will guarantee a 10% – 13% return on investment for the private dollars invested in the downtown hotel project?…that with such a financial requirement on the table it is no wonder that Mayor Winnecke at this hour has not invited City Councilman John Friend, CPA to his office for a convincing session?…when a person with a keen eye for numbers looks this over the wheels on this bus are likely to explode before falling off?…it does not take a CPA to figure out that giving out incentives of over $40 Million for a hotel that will be worth $20 Million, guaranteeing an above market ROI, and handing the deed to the recipients of this government largesse is bordering on fiscal insanity?…the actions of Evansville on occasion make the financial actions in Washington DC look frugal?
St. Mary’s Medical Center Free Family Fun Night –
The University of Evansville will celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday, January 21 with a daylong series of events – including a re-enactment of the 1963 Civil Rights March on Washington, D.C., the William G. and Rose M. Mays Martin Luther King Jr. Lectureship, and a viewing of the 57th presidential inauguration.