Or why does a banker need a sweetheart loan?
Seriously, why does Bank of America need a $4.8 million interest-only loan from the city of Charlotte in order to build a mixed-use development on 17 acres of city-owned land at the Scaleybark light rail station? Did BofA go belly up? Is U2 suing them?
BofA has $4.8 million in its non-dairy creamer kitty.
More importantly, why does the public have to subsidize any development along the $500 million choo-choo line? Okay, okay it started with the city subsidy of the Westin, but that was back during the $40 million trolley. This is light rail, light rail is supposed to do magical things. Just ask the dopes in East Charlotte.
And, wait, lookee-here, here’s an actual tax-increment financing proposal for the site from another developer. Total: $33 million. We just knew that was coming, didn’t we? Way to punch holes in the property tax base, folks. Do city officials try to re-invent the wheel or have they just never paused to think — about anything.
At least city councilman Andy Dulin is in there swinging. But odds are the earth will open up and swallow the site before the city takes Dulin’s common-sense suggestion to just spend $1.1 million to build CATS its precious parking at the site and then sell-off the rest of the parcel to the highest bidder, free-and-clear, no subsidy.
Of course, if the city does that, the city cannot micromanage what goes on the site, and micromanaging development is what the choo-choo train is all about. Has always been about.
