I’m a little naive, so I didn’t take the suggestion that the Greensboro City Council would resort to certificates of participation to fund a downtown performing arts center as seriously as I should have.
This WGHP story is a big dose of reality. Note Walker Sanders’ response to council member Trudy Wade’s statement that taxpayers should be directly involved at the ballot box:
Walker Sanders, president of the Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro, believes taxpayers are involved. That’s through representative government via the City Council and representation by the 63-member task force. The task force has also held and will hold community forums where anyone can listen to the plans and ask questions.
He said it’s not about getting around voter approval. Instead, it’s about trying to find some other way to pay for the performing arts center than putting even more tax burden on the backs of city property owners.
He believes that’s what a bond referendum would do, so he said other methods should be considered.
Those other methods include COPs but also using hotel taxes and parking deck money, which would, again, require city council approval but not individual voter approval.
Get ready—the powers that be want this bad, and they see the handwriting on the wall that a bond referendum won’t pass.
