Thursday, February 25, 1999
Convention center expansion has critic
Tax activist says plan's too costly
BY LUCY MAY
The Cincinnati Enquirer
The former chairman of a county tax-review panel is taking aim at the pet project of Cincinnati's business elite: the proposed expansion of downtown's convention center.
Chris Finney, who fought to limit tax increases when he was chairman of Hamilton County's Tax Levy Review Committee, said Wednesday the expansion of the Albert B. Sabin Convention Center — and its estimated cost of $325 million to $350 million — is too heavy a burden for local taxpayers.
“This is a third of a billion dollars. This used to be a big deal in this city,” he said. “I would certainly hope that people would organize against this.”
Mr. Finney, a conservative Republican activist, also criticized politicians who endorsed the expansion Tuesday, just three days after formally receiving a new consultant's report endorsing the expansion.
“It's entirely irresponsible for Tom Neyer and seven council members to endorse this when they haven't had time to read the report or endorse a funding mechanism,” he said. “For our public officials to fall all over them selves is just outrageous.”
Mr. Neyer, the county commission president, Mayor Roxanne Qualls and council members Paul Booth, Jeanette Cissell, Minette Cooper, Todd Portune, Jim Tarbell and Charlie Winburn all endorsed the plan.
Ms. Qualls said she endorsed the expansion because she believes in its benefits, adding, “I suggest Mr. Finney should run for office instead of exercising the failed leadership of saying no.”
Mr. Tarbell said he has seen a funding plan that includes a “little bit of everything,” and he supports the project because “this is something that seems to have universal support between private interests and public interests and can expose the cultural richness of Cincinnati
to visitors.”
No funding plan has been unveiled. Possible sources of funding include an increase in the city and county hotel tax, a new restaurant tax, the sale of naming rights, possibly to Delta Air Lines, and additional funds from the city, county and state.
Greater Cincinnati Convention & Visitors Bureau President Michael Wilson, who is leading the charge for the expansion, said advocates want funding sources that have as little impact as possible on local taxpayers.
Advocates also want only tax increases that do not require voter approval, and politicians have ruled out another countywide sales tax increase like the one used to build new stadiums for the Bengals and Reds.
City and business leaders have been studying an expansion for nearly a decade. They warn that the longer the community takes to start the project, the more expensive it will become.
Mr. Wilson argued an expanded center would generate hundreds of millions of dollars of economic impact for the region by importing new dollars to the area, something other industries can't do.
Mr. Finney dismissed those arguments.
“What is this economic engine they're talking about?” he said. “We're going to be producing jobs for hotel clerks and janitors and waiters at restaurants. They're horrible, poor-paying jobs.”
But Mr. Wilson said those jobs are good, entry-level positions for people with entry-level skills. An expansion will create executive-level jobs in the hospitality industry, too, he argued.
“We're going to try to ensure that the jobs that are created are created for local people who need jobs,” he said.
Mr. Finney also said that any money the city and county spend on the convention center is tax money that could be spent on other things or returned to taxpayers.
“The bottom line is the city of Cincinnati is dumping enormous amounts of cash into downtown, and they have neighborhoods that look like bomb zones,” said Mr. Finney, of Anderson Township.
But Mr. Wilson countered that investing in the convention center expansion will help the entire community.
“I look at this project and see it as a means of building this economy,” he said.
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