PEORIA -- Local business leaders persuaded -- or intimidated -- Peoria County educators into dropping their plans to ask voters for a sales tax increase to support their schools, an activist against the proposed museum tax said on March 20.
Karrie Alms, a founder of Citizens for Responsible Spending, held a news conference to release letters from officials of Caterpillar, Inc., Illinois Mutual Insurance Co. and the Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce to local school officials.
The letters "claim that 'combining the museum's sales tax referendum with a sales tax increase to fun capital expenditures for Peoria County schools would doom both efforts to failure.' " They conclude the museum tax should be the only tax on the ballot," Alms said.
"We have talked to superintendents. They have spoken off the record. There was some pressure to go along" with the business community, Alms said.
So there's no tax referendum on the April 7 ballot for schools, only the museum, which is being touted as very educational.
The group believes the museum block plan is flawed, and the only way to stop it is to vote against the referendum.
Voters are being asked to approve a sales tax increase of 25 cents per $100, with titled items such as cars not included. Proponents have estimated the average person will pay an extra $17 a year in sales taxes.
The money will pay off the bonds used to construct the museum complex. Caterpillar plans to build an elaborate visitor center nearby, and an IMax theater is planned for the site -- a city-owned block near the riverfront where Sears once stood.
The revelation that local museum block supporters are playing hard ball is no surprise. These are business types that probably still believe in the cruel capitalist ideology that has brought us the current economic meltdown. "My way or the highway," has been used to describe them.
Caterpillar, especially, has claimed that it won't build the visitors center if the referendum fails. Whatever plan B may become, they're against it.
There's also money to be made from the museum block, by the people building it, selling the bonds, and who knows who else. The project has been described as Peoria's own stimulus plan.
That said, the plans look enticing, and $17 is not enough money to worry about for most Peoria residents. If you think disposable income has vanished, just look around. Good restaurants are packed, traffic is bad, there's usually a line at the drive up Starbucks at War Memorial and Prospect. I still see help-wanted ads around town.
Peoria has suffered significant layoffs, but apparently not enough to impact the community severely. I personally know two Peorians who recently bought nice new cars. Paid cash! (At lease they can enjoy their cars, as opposed to watching their IRAs crash.)
It's hard to oppose a new museum. Peoria's history is fabulous, and should make for great museum fare. The Caterpillar center also looks terrific.
And yet, the track record of most of the business/political establishment in Peoria pushing this project is terrible.
They allow historic buildings to be demolished to make even more parking lots, and seem to have no interest in Peoria's architectural history. They have invested public money in projects that are supposed to be self supporting but aren't, and require more public money: the Gateway Building, the riverfront parking deck, Cub Foods plaza and the Riverplex come to mind quickly.
Museum opponents fear the project will not be self supporting, and end up requiring tax subsidies, like the others above.
Alms and others, especially Third District city council candidate Beth Akeson, argue that the museum block needs a commercial component to be successful. Then it won't need public tax funds.
But the city council just approved a Mariott Hotel for a historic prime downtown Peoria block, where historic buildings will be demolished.
Why not send that hotel to the vacant block, as part of the complex?
And where are the gardens, the skating rink and other amenities that would make the museum block even more appealing? Chicago's Millennium Park comes to mind.
So the museum vote dilemma is this: do we trust the local establishment to get it right this time?
Or do we vote it down and hope for a better plan?
Guess early voting isn't an option yet for me. I'm still making up my mind on this one.
-- Elaine Hopkins
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