If you read the article carefully the take away is this:

These Expo Centers that are popping up across the South and now our own state are ADDING NO Value to the communities they pop up in, not increasing the Wealth and Value Added Index in the local areas and suck money from either the State or City/County Governments Via Tax's. These places do NOT have a good record of ROI to their respective communities.

Show me some examples of return on investment??? Jobs that are are service Industry??? I don't care WHO is funding them, there bad investments period. The only folks who win here are the Contractors collecting the 12 Million Dollars.

One more time: How many jobs will this create, At What Pay scale are these Jobs going to be at? Now for some folks this is great for seeing ball games and having some local fun! No question, a good time will certainly be had with this new center. BUT-----The real fact is we will spend $300K-$700K (Depending on how we run the Expo center) in subsidies every year this place is open, bet we could have coaxed alot of Companies to the Tri-County over the next few years with those funds.

Will be great to watch ball games there but will not help our Median Income Level or help the folks in our better themselves.

Just who is the gripe with? Frankfort maybe? Not Pikeville or Corbin. I am still waiting to see where to get the 12 Million grant that was referred to. Truth is, there is no such grant out there. Cities must take what is available in the way of State and Federal money or another city will. It is easy to complain and criticize.  

Strange?????????????I never got an answer on what the Industrial Boards Budget is and who or what companies are on the way??? I can't seem to find the answer to the Jobs creation question either that the new Expo center will create?

We have folks gung ho here for a Rest. Tax and seem to have volumes of information and Knowledge on how all this will better the city but when we ask how many jobs this will create and the wages of thoses jobs, there is silence??????

Come on, no more opinions just:How many New Jobs is this Creating (The Expo center) and What will the wages be???

I'm waiting

I doubt that their budget is very much.(But your in favor of $300K+ for a New Expo Center Subsidy???) If you are really interested you might want to attend their next meeting and ask your budget question. Then you can come back and post the answer.

Attending meetings is a 1950's excuse, in this information age all Minutes could be posted and communicated at Light speed, you could bring in feedback from every corner of the City, County, Nation. Just like this web-site is able to do., simply showing up for a once a month or once a quater meeting is out of date thinking.

Do you not think it strange that we can subsidize $300K-$500K on the new expo center and create only small service sector type jobs when we could direct the $300-$500K towards the Industrial Budget and it pay a much higher Return On Investment with new jobs that pay very good wages? Don't you think that might be a better long term investment of our local dollars?

Watch the Elections that are coming up, let's see if the voters are happy with our current Political Direction.

The 12 Million is a grant from the state but the subsidy I just mentioned is within our city control and something we could use to build Local Median Income Levels and add Value Added Long Term Economic Growth to the City.

Anonymous wrote:

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Watch the Elections that are coming up, let's see if the voters are happy with our current Political Direction.

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The Mayor and one of the commissioners are not seeking re-election in November. But overall, I think the present administration at City Hall has done a good job. From what the newspapers reported, the City was in terrible financial shape. Lost something like 600,000 the year before. I am not really sure about the numbers but I recall it being reported that the City was having to borrow money to pay bills. Why? Most likely because they had failed to make the necessary tax increases when they should have. It is easy to just leave the problem to the next group. Any tax increases that the present administration made were probably necessary. I am sure that some of your comments about median income are well meaning but the elected officials can only take advantage of what is out there for cities. You make a lot of negative remarks about the Expo Center and about the Industrial Budget and such but how about coming up with some sound suggestions. Not just complaints about the new arena or stats from some website. Perhaps you should get involved in City government. Have you taken a look to see who the candidates are for mayor and commissioner? Some are qualified. Some are not. 

Anonymous wrote:

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Some also live in Corbin and some do NOT! Qualified is one thing, being a Corbin resident is the first Qualification.

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I agree.

I disagree with you on this point. You keep bringing this up like there is actually something that can be done about it. It is too late to get out of the Expo Center deal, if that is what you are wanting Corbin's elected officials to do. Besides, it is not Corbin's 12 Million Dollar investment.  It's the States. This is an arrangement that was started back in Mayor Williamson's days. I cannot put a dollar amount on the future benefit to the citizens from this project any more than you can. ... But I do enjoy discussing it with you.

It's all our Investment, these are are hard earned Tax dollars the people of Ky have provided, including us.

The point I am trying to get across to you is this: "The Priorities of Your(Our) City Government"

We need our elected officials to hopefully think a little different, maybe what is Value Added to the Community. Anytime we pull tax dollars in the form of tax's directly out of the community it should go for something that makes our area worth more, this is in terms of the people's personel wealth and the attractivness of the community to bring in Major industry.

You absolutley can put a future Value on this, anyone who runs any type of business that brings in money has to do this, Most all small communities that levy tax's in poor areas of the country (Hub Zones) always ask "The What's" before levying any tax regardless if it's a Rest. Tax or any other Tax because of the area we live in and how hard our folks have to work for a living.

This is called good Fiscal responsibility and separates the good leaders from the one's who really do not know what they are doing.

Now------You said Nothing can be done about this???? Sure there is! Our leaders would have to have the guts to actually send Ernie's check back (Return to Sender!)

You are correct the whole thing is really a go but once again this type of thinking only builds walk ways around Lynn camp Creek & Expo Centers, the citizens will not improve their Standard Of Living in the area.

We do agree on the Residency requirement for mayor.

My point was that the city leaders would have to have the guts to wiggle out and make an actual executive decision here, which there absolutley not gonna do. In politics there is always a deal and or another alternative, using pharses that say "Nothing can be done" is not thinking outside the box. Plenty can be done if your willing to think?

Did you miss the part about the restaurant tax money only being available for Tourism? 

I do not agree that money spent on tourism is "blowing money"?

The person with all the gripes about taxes and the expo center, go to the city meetings.  You have no reason to complain so much if you make your voice heard to the ones making the decisions.

 

Quit being so negative about everything...how about talking about some positives for a change...if you have such strong feelings about issues, make your voice heard...otherwise, quit complaining.

Quit being so negative about everything...how about talking about some positives for a change...if you have such strong feelings about issues, make your voice heard...otherwise, quit complaining.

Negative???? Since when is it Negative to challenge a City Tax Burden on the people and blowing $500 Thousand Bucks per year??? How many Jobs again is this creating?, come on folks, don't be the same crowd who Builds Sidewalks around Lynn Camp Creek and spends Hundreds of Thousands on Expo Centers.

Lets see what the Voters have to say on May 16th???? We'll see if they agree with this direction, I believe 3 of the 4 Commisioners are up for re-election? Let's see if they all get re-elected.