MAXWELL
“return on investment” to them … and got it wrong.
Fred Winterkamp was trying to defend the fact that the convention center is a money pit with an operating deficit of up to $10 million a year.
Winterkamp said that’s A-OK, because “If we spend $10 million a year on the convention center, and the convention center results in $3 billion in visitor spending,” that’s a spectacular return on investment.
Except the county doesn’t spend only $10 million a year on the convention center. It spends more than 10 times that much; $126 million some years.
See, Fred forgot to include all the annual debt payments. It would be like you claiming you only spend $300 a month to live in your house … if you don’t count the mortgage payments anyway.
But there was an even bigger flaw to this return-on-investment claim. ROI is supposed to mean that, if you spend $1 to make $2, you have a 2-to-1 return on your investment.
That’s not what happens in the convention-center business. Here, taxpayers spend the money and private businesses reap the returns. Mainly hotels and restaurants.
A convention center is giant public subsidy, primarily for companies that pay lousy wages.
One commissioner seemed to get that. Emily Bonilla noted that all the past promises about the convention center enriching Orange County haven’t panned out.
To the contrary, we rank dead last in median wages — 50th out of 50 — among America’s largest metros.
“It was supposed to make Orange County a prosperous community for everyone who lives here,” Bonilla said. “Well, that hasn’t happened.”
That’s why this expansion would be a rotten idea even if this economy was soaring.
This community has so many other needs — including roads and transit that tourists demand and tourism workers need.
Except staffers threw cold water on that idea, suggesting hotel taxes can’t be spent that way.
I guess they hoped commissioners were too lazy to look one county over to Brevard to see headlines like this: “County Commission begins debate on changes in use of tourist tax to help roads, lagoon.”
County commissioners can spend hotel taxes in many ways under current state statutes (if they bothered reading them). And they could lobby legislators to change the spending rules as other counties have successfully done (if they bothered to do some research).
It’s easy to mislead those so willing to be misled.
Winterkamp also kept telling commissioners they had an obligation to honor the wishes of voters in 1978 who wanted to use hotel taxes solely to beef up tourism.
Said Bonilla: “That was a very long time ago and a very different time than what we’re living in today.”
That’s when I heard a retort so dopey I had to replay it five times to make sure I’d heard it correctly.
In response to Bonilla’s contention that needs change over time, Commissioner Betsy VanderLey said: “We founded the country over 200 years ago, and that’s working out. So there’s that.”
Um, yes, Commissioner, we did indeed found this country over 200 years ago. A few things have changed since then. Like slavery. And segregation. And denying women the right to vote.
Bonilla’s point was that an enlightened society evolves.
VanderLey’s attempt at snark was so sadly off-base that it actually bolstered Bonilla’s argument.
Both Bonilla and VanderLey are up for re-election this year, by the way. So is Mayra Uribe, who asked a number of tough questions, but stopped short of voicing opposition the expansion.
The commission concluded its meeting by taking no action, meaning the expansion spending will continue.
I like Mayor Jerry Demings. But he looked more like a lapdog than a watchdog this week, feeding his staffers softball questions that sounded like they were pre-written by local hoteliers.
County leaders claim they’ll re-evaluate the wisdom of building the full project soon.
In the meantime, the plan is to barrel ahead, spending millions on design … even as the private sector exercises caution.
If you think commissioners should start asking tougher questions, you can get their contact info here: orangecountyfl. net/BoardofCommissioners.