The Phoenix New Times ran a story dated Friday 24 August entitled,
It’s no surprise to me
that crony capitalism is alive and well at the Scottsdale City Hall Kiva. I registered my objection to this $75,000 taxpayer subsidy to a private business back in May. Look at time index 00:10:00.
In addition, however, I also voiced my objection that same night to a $4 MILLION subsidy. That’s at time index 00:05:30. The Scottsdale Cultural Council (a private business) gets this money every year under a 20-year, no-bid “management services agreement,” for occupying the taxpayer-owned Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts and the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, among others.
Did I mention SCC’s city contract permits them to charge admission and keep all of it? Furthermore, SCC’s board of trustees is stuffed with a who’s who of the Chamber of Commerce, including Chamber CEO Rick Kidder and SCC board chair Mike Miller from Scottsdale Insurance.
This is typical of the “businesslike approach” of our current mayor and city council, and it needs to change.