The stadium tax campaign, the Bengals lease, the Paul Brown Stadium cost overruns, and the lying. cheating and stealing that went with all of it, was awful for our region and its taxpayers. But it was also one of the best things that happened for the tax movement in greater Cincinnati. It birthed COAST and gave us a rallying cry that lasted for more than a decade. Thereafter, Hamilton County voters became infinitely more skeptical, more circumspect, more realistic about levies on the ballot and big public works projects birthed by politicians and business leaders.
Today's Enquirer has an instructive footnote to that story, here. To induce the voters to approve the sales tax hike, and ultimately the bloated construction of two stadiums, the State supposedly although vaguely promised an $81 million grant. But guess what happened? As Dusty Rhodes reminds us, the State reneged (if they ever "promised" at all) on $7.5 million of that, leaving Hamilton County taxpayers holding the bag.
This is why, the next time they shine us on with promises of money from Washington and Columbus to "save" our City, have us "join the big leagues," tell us that "Washington is watching," we can thumb our noses at them, and say "no thanks." You can keep your empty promises and we'll keep our money.
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