Public investment in Private industry – The Downtown Hotel‏

Letter written to City Council by Bruce Ungethiem

City Council Members,

You are being asked by the Mayor of our city to use millions of dollars of public funds to invest in a private industry which will not pay it back and when the job is complete we will not own any part of! This is called a donation!

As a rational person you have to ask yourself the following questions:
1.If this were my personal money would I make the investment?
2.Am I discriminating against the other hotel owners in my town by subsidizing this hotel?
3.Am I discriminating against the citizens on the east , west and north sides of Evansville by continuing to pour money into a downtown area that continues to not respond to the stimulus money?
4.Finally Is this legal? –
1.Indiana State Constitution Bill of Rights Article 1 ,Section 23 states – The General Assembly shall not grant to any citizen, or class of citizens, privileges or immunities, which upon the same terms, shall not equally belong to all citizens. – By granting privileges to one hotel owner over another are you breaking state law?
2.The State constitution Article 11, section 12 states- The State shall not be a stockholder in any bank; nor shall the credit of the State ever be given, or loaned in aid of any person, association or corporation; nor shall the State become a stockholder in any corporation or association. -Isn’t this what the Mayor is asking you to do? If it is against the State constitution to loan money to a corporation shouldn’t it also apply to a city within the state?

I have always believed the role of any government was to provide a fairly enforce the rules much like a referee in a sporting competition. It is the governments job to level the playing field and ensure everyone has a fair chance to compete and succeed. It is not the governments responsibility to jump on one side and determine the outcome. That is called discrimination!

You are the stewards of the public money – please spend it wisely.

Bruce Ungethiem