Posts Tagged Cleveland Browns
Can Anyone Expect a Public Official to Notice?
Posted by Roldo Bartimole in Economic Development, Politicians on April 3, 2010
April 3, 2010… Is there a Cleveland City Council member who can show any moxie when it comes to pursuing a bit of economic justice in this town? Nah. Too much to expect.
Public servants don’t seem to want to provide that service. Seeing justice is out of their line of sight.
Maybe it’s too much trouble too. Maybe they just don’t see the necessity. That happens a lot. They aren’t a very zealous crowd it seems. I don’t sense much passion there. More like bureaucratic. Short on compassion. Where’s Fanny Lewis?
Anyway there seems to be a dearth of people who even think in those 60ish terms any more. It’s a shame. We have lost so much of our passion about what’s wrong. Our city and culture reveal it.
The reason I’m bringing this up isn’t new. I’ve mentioned it before. Likely I’ll mention it again. And again. Probably AGAIN.
Here’s the deal: Billionaire Randy Lerner has a sweetheart contract. It was given to him by former Mayor Michael White and his favorite lawyer, Fred Nance of Squire Sanders & Dempsey. Quite a duo.
We continually pay dearly to see that the Lerner family does well. Since August of 2005, we county taxpayers have contributed $63,867,150.83 to help the City of Cleveland pay to build Browns stadium By the way, it is used about 10 dates a year.
That $63 million represents taxes we paid on cigarettes and various forms of alcohol as of the end of March. We also pay, but it isn’t recorded, 7.75 percent regular sales tax on the $63 million. That represents another nearly $500,000. This, folks, is real money.
Lerner, owner of the Cleveland Browns, pays almost no rent for a stadium built entirely by the taxpayers of Cleveland. A stadium, by the way, that pays no property taxes on the structure. He got the bargain $250,000 a year rent, never to rise. And the city gave the extra bargain of picking up the insurance costs of the stadium, thus the Browns.
As I’ve mentioned before, the city pays the property taxes on the land, which was provided by the city free of charge.
The city pays much more for the land property taxes than Lerner pays – or will ever pay – to rent the whole thing. The city pays more than $400,000 annually. Where can you get a deal like that? No where. Unless you’re very, very rich.
Do you think Mayor Frank Jackson would have the sense to tell Lerner – time to renegotiate the terms of the lease? You got a sweetheart deal, Mr. Lerner. Now, it’s time to pay a just price for use of the facility. Our city needs it. Our school children need it.
Jackson, of course, should have done this a long time ago. But he won’t. Makes too much sense.
Especially since the Browns have a training center in Berea. That means that though the Browns play all their games at the city’s stadium at really bargain prices, the wealthy Browns players only pay partial income (payroll) taxes in Cleveland. Berea gets to share the tax revenue.
You would think that Jeff Johnson or Brian Cummins – two of the more progressive Council members – would say, “Hey, the city’s getting taken. Time to renegotiation with the Browns. Let’s bring Lerner in here.”
Or maybe, Dona Brady or Matt Zone or Kevin Conwell or one of the new Council members.
Is there anyone awake at 60l Lakeside? Guess not.
Easier, I guess, to add bucks onto residents water bill for garbage pickup.
For more vile details: How Good It Gets for the Lerner Family
Cuyahoga County Keeps Taking Extra Millions from Taxpayers
Posted by Roldo Bartimole in Economic Development, Politicians on March 5, 2010
March 5, 2010… The quarter-percent sales tax for the medical mart has now cost County taxpayers $87 million. MMPI, Tim Hagan and his Kennedy friends thank you all. Keep it coming, says Tim.
This is to fulfill the agenda of the Greater Cleveland Partnership. The corrupters of our civic life mentioned in my post below. The takers in our community life.
Since January 2008 through February 2010 County taxpayers have paid via the County Commissioners voted sales tax increase $87,131,339.38 for the med mart & convention center project.
That’s $87 million in slightly over two years. How it rolls in!
That is $87 million that could not be spent on food, gasoline, restaurants, toys, theater tickets or even cigarettes. In other words, this is $87 million worth of anti-stimulus money for Cuyahoga County businesses. It’s all take, no give.
That wasn’t the end of our contributions, however.
We have also contributed $63 million for the Browns. Is it in any way worth it? That’s more income really for Randy Lerner and family. Stimulus for the billionaires. And, of course, for the putrid football team.
We’ve been paying sales “sin” taxes on alcohol and cigarette products for the Browns Stadium (used maybe 9 or 10 times a year) since August 2005. It simply picked up from Gateway’s taxes. But you did vote for it.
The total take is $63,088,767.28. Thank you suckers, says Randy.
Just for the fun of it, here’s how the tax breaks down:
Cigarette smokers gave: $14.3 million.
Alcohol drinkers gave: $22.8 million.
Beer drinkers gave: $20.6 million.
Wine & Mixed beverage drinkers gave: $5.1 million.
That is $63 million that can’t be spent on food, gasoline, restaurants, toys, theater tickets or even cigarettes. To say nothing of rent and your mortgage. Another anti-stimulus poke to the wallet and a loss for Cuyahoga County businesses.
It comes in small bites but it’s somebody’s big free dinner.
The arts & culture tax has netted $58 million of your tax dollars since February 2007. The exact take was $58,061,190.71.
The taxes come primarily from cigarette smokers.
The total extra taxes – all highly regressive – total well more than $200 million taken in highly regressive taxes, the kind wealth people love to impose on ordinary, hard-working people.
You know most of it is only the beginning. Because the taxes remain for years and years to come. I doubt that anyone will legally challenge these taxes by a vote.