The Keep the Dollars in Dallas folks had a luncheon at Maggiano’s in NorthPark today whereat an economist by the name of Ray Perryman said if Dallas votes to go wet in November, the city will get $33 million in tax revenues, and 29,000 new jobs will be created. The full release is after the jump. If you want to read the full text of Perryman’s economic study, knock yourself out. But just know this: Keep the Dollars in Dallas paid $16,000 for the study, so you know it was only going to come to one conclusion. The city staff did its own back-of-envelope figuring and guesses that if both measures pass in November, it’ll mean maybe, oh, an extra $11 million in tax revenues. On the high side. Likely less than that.
Whatever. If it means even $1 more in tax revenue, the two measures should pass. Because the current situation is just stupid. Why can I go to one grocery store and get a bottle of wine with my steaks and portobello shrooms but not the other? And why do I have to be a member of a private club to have a beer at one restaurant but not the other one right across the street? Just dumb. In our August issue, Wick makes the same argument, although more eloquently.
And as long as I’m at it, while on vacation last week, I made a stop in beautiful Portland, Oregon, where microbreweries flourish. In a restaurant in Portland, you can discover a great IPA like Hop Monkey, and then you can walk out of there with a growler of the stuff to drink later. Why are we letting the TABC keep us from doing the same thing in Texas? That’s why we don’t enjoy the same microbrewery scene that they have in places like Oregon.
I’m so pissed, I need a drink.
WORLD- RENOWNED ECONOMIST SAYS ELECTION WILL BRING $33 MILLION;
CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE FROM ALL PARTS OF THE CITY ENDORSE CAMPAIGN
Keep the Dollars In Dallas is about Economics: Jobs, Development, and Tax Revenue
(Dallas, TX —July 14, 2010)Â Noted Economist Dr. Ray Perryman released his economic impact report detailing the significant economic benefits of voting Yes on the wet-dry election. The Perryman report indicates Dallas will see gains of more than $33 million dollars in added sales tax revenues. At a time when the City of Dallas is facing a $130 million budget shortfall, passing the wet-dry election could mean avoiding a sales tax increase for Dallas residents. The additional sales tax dollars could also go toward keeping libraries open, paving streets and keeping police officers on the beat. The Perryman report indicates 29,000 new jobs will be created in Dallas if the wet-dry issue passes.
Dr. Perryman is a world-renowned economist. Among Dr. Perryman’s numerous awards are: the Nation’s Outstanding Young Economist and Social Scientist; the Outstanding Young Person in the World in the Field of Economics and Business; and one of the Ten Outstanding Young Persons in the World.
“The expansion of wet areas in the City of Dallas would encourage locations of new businesses and relocations of existing businesses to zones that are not currently under consideration because of the dry area conditions. New business would, in turn, generate economic activity, provide employment, and increase tax revenues in these areas,” explains Dr. Perryman.
Chambers of Commerce from all parts of Dallas came together to endorse Keep the Dollars in Dallas. The Oak Cliff Chamber of Commerce, East Dallas Chamber of Commerce, North Dallas Chamber of Commerce, West Dallas Chamber of Commerce, South East Dallas Chamber of Commerce, North Texas GLBT Chamber of Commerce, West End Association and the Greater Dallas Hispanic Chamber of Commerce all announced their support for a Yes vote on the wet-dry election.
“In Oak Cliff, we recognize passing this initiative means more economic vibrancy, better quality of life and more convenience in our neighborhood,” says Bob Stimson, President of the Oak Cliff Chamber of Commerce.
