Quote:
Originally Posted by TimeAgain
Someone explain to my why Lincoln Park needs $1.3 billion in public dollars? Wouldn't that money be better spent encouraging development in other parts of the city.
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Because the return on investment is higher in this area. Build all the bridges, roads and transitways you want in depressed areas of the city, and nothing will happen. Thousands of young professionals and F500 HQs are not going to set up shop there that easily.
The TIF encourages a larger private investment from Sterling Bay and will have a larger long-term payoff for the rest of the city. If we force the cost of these public goods onto a private developer, they will reduce their private investment and avoid as much investment in infrastructure as possible.
The irony is that it's possible that if the TIF is shot down congestion could end up worse, depending on how SB re-designs their plans and the zoning allowances we make. When from their perspective every dollar spent making congestion less bad for Lincoln Park or Bucktown is a wasted dollar, and when they will need to build more densely to make up for those wasted expenditures, what exactly is the outcome we expect?
Public goods require public funds. It's that simple.