HomeMy WebLinkAbout05-Public Comments
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LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF SAN BERNARDINO
568 N. Mt. View Ave., Suite 150
San Bernardino, Ca.IW'fllij into Recont It
889-8600 CII'"1cillCmyOevCms UII:
TO:
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FROM:
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The League of Women Voters of San Bernardino
,..represented by Marion White-Vassilakos, president
SUBJECT: Downtown cinema complex
DATE: Dec. 2, 1996 meeting of Mayor and Common
City Clerk/COC Seey
E!btyt~y Bernardino
The League of Women Voters of San Bernardino is concerned about the
future of our City. Recent CDC decisions re- public money involved in a plan
to build a 20 screen cinema complex downtown prompts my appearance today.
We think some questions need to be addressed regarding decisions about
redevelopment and redevelopment financing plans:
1. What are the guidelines, the criteria, for funding decisions made by
the CDC? what makes a particular development a good investment of
public money? Is a 75 \ investment of public funds (actuallly 90 \
of the cinema funding) in a private commercial enterprise a wise use
of public money? If the cinema is a potential moneymaker, why does't
private money build it?
2. What degree of risk is acceptable, and how is that risk calculated?
San Jose's RDA found it necessary to borrow from the City's general
fund in 1995 in order to meet the agency's bonded indebtedness.
3. A recent future economic strategy for the City recommended specific
types of business for improving ~conomic conditions. Is the
Community Development Commission giving these types of development
priority?
Cinemas fit the description of a secondary activity, which in the
words of the report "While deepening the secondary tier is a worthy
objective, it should be made clear that the least amount of money and
time should be devoted to it...."
4. It is anticipated that the 20 screen cinema will attract 1.5 to 2
million film goers annually. Who are these film goers? What are the
demographics of movie goers? Have commission members received
studies of who comprises the film-going public?
5. With a 3 to 5 year timeline for completion,
area cinemas in the Inland Empire by 2000?
become a predominant economic problem?
will there be a glut of
Will cinema failures
Other questions for which the public needs answers include:
6. What is the total geographic area of the City which is under a frozen
tax base?
7. What is the value of all tax increment accruing to the EDA annually,
and how much of that tax increment is already encumbered to pay
existing debt? How much tax increment is produced by each project
area, and where --in what project-- is that increment being spent?
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