Corporate welfare happens all the time. The amount of tax breaks and benefits given to attract and retain business is something people just aren't aware of, and those numbers can be staggering. You don't get head offices to relocate to your city without throwing them an extremely lucrative bone. My god, if the usual pearl clutchers had been around to see what the CoC did to bring CP Rail to town back in '96 it would have been mayhem. You have to make it worth the interest's while to come here and then keep them happy. That comes through tax breaks and subsidies to get things done, like build infrastructure and lease over-priced office space in the glass towers of the downtown core.
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