Quote:
Originally Posted by DeluxeMoustache
A lot of people don’t complain about property taxes
Taxes are meant to be used for things including services and infrastructure
Yes, the government has money earmarked for infrastructure. Not sure why that is a problem. Point is, if it’s already budgeted for, these aren’t new taxpayer dollars. It’s just the allocation of the earmarked dollars
There are obvious immediate economic benefits, it’s not like this is a sunk cost. In the near term, a bunch of that investment goes directly into the local labour force and businesses providing the materials and services. Money into the local economy. The government will also collect back the GST on the transactions, and income taxes for all the labourers, no?
I would expect the project will attract further private sector development
Let’s do a quick calculation - worst case scenario — say this is just a massive sunk cost and was all net new dollars they were asking for - then if the contribution would see me holding the bag equally with all Albertans
1.226 B / 4.5 million is 272 per Albertan
Over 35 years, that’s $7.78 a year
70 percent (which Notley said taxpayers are paying) of that is $5.44 per year
I personally make worse decisions with 5 bucks more than once a year.
(Anyone here ever bought a ticket to a Flames game? )
(Also, I’m sure there is someone on here complaining about it, that also just throws out their recyclables instead of going to the bottle depot.)
Meanwhile the Alberta government had higher than forecasted 76 billion (14 billion higher than the budgeted 62) in projected revenue in 2022-23
They have a 23 billion dollar capital plan this year covering many things and this is a line item, and I’m sure the capital spend is spread over a few years
I’m fine. I will not notice a thing in my day to day and expect most people won’t either. It will be much more of a high profile bitching contest than anything that torpedoes anyone’s way of life
Build a new stadium.
Maybe Taylor Swift will come here
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No offence, but I don't think just repeating the arguments I already diluted in the post you quoted is really moving the needle. Did you do it on purpose? Because it's kind of funny if so. And the math exercise was definitely icing on the cake, let me know how it goes when you get hired to go around to a bunch of children and infants in Grand Prairie or Medicine Hat and tell them to give you $5 to pay their yearly share of the arena lol.
We get it, though, unquantifiable economic benefits, the money is already earmarked, we won't even notice it, etc etc. It's been said. We understand. We just need to trust that the answers are in the ether or something.
Why can't people be straight about it? Why all the cover of darkness for what could easily be said as "I just want it and don't actually care about the economic side of things." I'm still going to enjoy the new arena, but man... it's not lost on me that this money could be far, far better spent. Do you really need to pretend that's not true to be excited by it? Why?