I count 72 items in the Dallas request for stimulus funds via the U.S. Conference of Mayors, but I could be off by 1 or 2. The biggest single item: $386 million for a convention center hotel.
That’s good by me. My opposition to the hotel was based on its proposed financing, not on the concept. If the U.S. wants to borrow to pay for it, instead of Dallas taxpayers, I say let’s get the dirt flying. It’s a question of rationale. The U.S. government presumably couldn’t care less whether Dallas actually has a hotel and whether it is ever profitable: the administration wants to jump-start jobs growth. It can print money to accomplish its goal. Dallas, on the other hand, cannot, and therefore must be held to a higher fiscal standard. So I’m with the City of Dallas on this. Let’s wait to see if the U.S. includes the project. Or if the stimulus package passes the Senate.
