Wagers are being made on which Arizona legislator would run legislation on behalf of the Rio Nuevo District Board this legislative session. Even money is on Senator Steve Farley and Representative Ethan Orr carrying the water with the Board’s lobbyist, Jonathan Paton.
The Rio Nuevo Board instructed Paton to enlist lawmakers and craft legislation that would allow the TIF district to abandon the requirement that it participate in the development of a downtown Tucson hotel.
Rio Nuevo must secure a Notice to Proceed by participating in the development of a hotel. Once the District receives the Notice to Proceed, it may then fund and develop other pet projects.
However, Board members argue that it is just too complicated to work out a deal with a hotelier, and they want to be able to throw more money at projects like Mission Gardens.
After having squandered over $230 million on hapless projects like Mission Gardens, which will not produce revenue and draw few taxpaying tourists, in 2010, state lawmakers prohibited Rio Nuevo from spending money on any projects until a hotel and arena were built.
Rio Nuevo circumvented the requirement to build a new arena by purchasing the dilapidated Tucson Convention Center. They are now spending what little money they have to make much needed repairs. The Urban Land Institute, a well-regarded land use group, found that the proposed fixes were adequate for Tucson’s market.
That finding has not been appreciated by the big-dreamers-with-other-people’s-money on the Rio Nuevo Board.
The board unanimously authorized Paton to craft and promote legislation which will allow them to capture the Department of Revenue data regarding the coding of business tax returns.
The Board also wants legislators to amend statutory language to allow Rio Nuevo board members to reside anywhere in Pima County.
Perhaps most striking, and what should be more alarming to taxpayers, is the request by the Board to approve a language change that would allow the District to approve contractual arrangements beyond 2025.
The Board also authorized the retention of a bond financial advisor to free up the reserve accounts established when the city-controlled district created the current bond debt. Rio Nuevo may be able to free up as much as $20,000,000 that could go toward development projects.
Once they have the Notice to Proceed provision eliminated, the Board could then spend the $20 million nearly any way they desire.
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