As reported in the Miami Herald today:
As Miami-Dade County commissioners worked late into the night to finalize financing for the Florida Marlins stadium last week, Commissioner Katy Sorenson posed a simple question: What's the total cost of financing going to be?
Burgess fudged: "I don't know off the top of my head."
Commissioner Katy Sorenson asked the question because she wanted it on the record. The Commissioner had to wait until the following day to get the answer from Bond Counsel. Perhaps the vote would have been different if this was on the record earlier. As the Herald reported:
The total cost is finally in black and white: $2.4 billion, spread over 40 years, to repay $409 million in bonds that will primarily, though not exclusively, cover stadium construction.
Was George Burgess trying to hide this information or was it that he truly didn't know? Why would he promote this deal without all the information on the table, especially the bottom line!
Big surprise. The County Manager doesn't know the cost "off of the top of his head." He only knows we should pay it. Another example of an exceedingly poor public process and poor public policy. Ready to get the pitchforks?
ReplyDeleteIs this the best use of public dollars, paying large loan interest payments and putting off debt? Well, I say:
ReplyDeleteNO NO NO NO NO NO!
My (FILL IN THE BLANK) would have killed me if I did this to our personal finances.
I get sick every time I think about what a waste of money this is.
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