Quote:
Originally Posted by Ozy_Flame
What art was in Calgary in 1980 that you enjoyed?
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Glenbow Museum showings, CPO, Heritage Park etc. What art is there to enjoy now? Here is a small list of the money the city spent on Art work which adds no value/culture etc., to the City of Calgary experience:
1) Tracking the Trail $195K (underneath an overpass)
2) Strung II $80K - bridge railing on a freeway
3) Skywalk $70K - overpass on Macleod Trail to Canyon Meadows LRT
4) Bearing $221K - 17th Street and 18th Ave NE
5) Luminous Crossing $1.8M City Hall LRT
I have no problem with art in general, I do have a problem with frivolous spending on pet projects. The items I mentioned above are a very small example of what the city has spent recently. If the Flames are expecting to build an arena then they should carry the majority of the cost themselves, but the city is also going to benefit from taxes from the venue and employee's of the team. The city should be willing to work with the ownership group on a escalating property tax over the lifetime of the venue. People utilizing the rink should also pay a ticket tax on all events to help cover the cost but that really has nothing to do with the city input into the costs.
As a season ticket holder I have no issue paying my share of the new facility, just like I have no issue paying my city property taxes, where I have an issue is politicians stating flat out that citizens don't have an appetite to pay for a facility for millionaires and billionaires, but they assume I have an appetite to pay for public artwork. They never asked for my input on the either project. That is my issue.