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There are several corporations and entities that receive “subsidies”
from the city of St. Petersburg. These include Tropicana Field, the Pier, Albert Whitted Airport, Mahaffey Theater and
the Seaport. These organizations are supposed to be self-sustaining – in other words their operations should pay
for themselves. Yet, they are given large checks that come directly from the pockets of the tax payers. Why?
Cut Taxes Now is working to fund out!
Here is a grid of all the money going to these corporations who have received
$33.8 million in taxpayer dollars since 2000. | | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 (est) | TOTAL (thousands) | | Bayfront/ | | | | | | | | | | Mahaffey | $1,487 | $1,332 | 1,356 | 1,645 | 1,753 | 1,379 | 958 | $9,910 | | | | | | | | | | | | Pier | 1,183 | 1,371 | 1,194 | 1,316 | 1,324 | 1,217 | 1,580 | 9,185 | | | | | | | | | | | | Tropicana | | | | | | | | | Field* | | | 4,013 | 3,775 | 1,516 | 1,100 | 800 | 11,204 | | | | | | | | | | | | Port ** | 150 | 150 | 150 | 230 | 375 | 538 | 562 | 2155 | | | | | | | | | | | | Airport** | | 90 | 325 | 325 | 226 | 385 | 1351 | | Totals | 2820 | 2853 | 6803 | 7291 | 5293 | 4460 | 4285 | $33,805 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Average
per year transferred to "self-sustaining" groups? $4.92 Million!
Total spent since 2000?:
$33.8 Million!
The city states they have contracts with the Trop. Yet the city has renegotiated
that contract several times since 1995 and could do so again. They say the voters approved keeping the Airport. They
did -- to keep the land from turning to condos - not to move tax money to the airport. For every wasted dollar there
is an excuse from a politician who doesn’t want to act responsibly.
These groups should be required to earn their way, just as any person or ordinary business has to earn their own keep.
We should get rid of corporate and social welfare and only spend taxpayers’ money for true, temporary social
safety nets and when the market has failed to provide for the consumer.
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